Making a Family
by PrincessPatrice
Summary: 9 year old Tony has been abused by his father for as long as he can remember, but his life is about to change for the better when he meets the Gibbs family. There are lots of ups and downs and new additions for the family. Although things are better for Tony things are far from perfect, especially when he gets sick.
1. Chapter 1

Nine year old Tony DiNozzo collapsed onto a bench looking onto the beach. He cradled his right arm across his chest and rested against the back of the bench with a low moan. He closed his eyes against the bright sun light and relaxed slightly.

He had only been sitting there for a few minutes when he heard someone sitting down beside him. He reluctantly opened his eyes and took a quick glance at the person. The man had brown hair that was starting to turn grey, which was cut marine style. Tony sighed and got up from the bench with a groan.

"Hey kid, are you alright." The man asked before Tony could get away.

"I'm fine sir." Tony replied politely and started to walk away.

The man jumped off the seat and hurried after him, much to Tony's dismay. Tony sped up as much as he could but the man was faster and grabbed his arm.

"Arrgh." Tony yelped and pulled his arm out of the man's grasp.

"Didn't mean to hurt you." The man said apologetically. "I can tell something is wrong and I just want to help."

"I'll be fine Sir." Tony assured with forced smile.

"Don't call me sir. I work for a living." The man said

"Sorry sir."

"And don't apologise it's a sign of weakness." he continued "Now why don't you tell me what's wrong. Did you hurt your arm?"

"I don't mean to be rude" Tony said as he edged slowly away, "But I don't know you, so I would like if you left me alone now."

"You can call me Gibbs." The man said with a smile and reached into his pocket. "I'm a federal agent." He continued as he showed Tony his badge. "I just want to help you. I can call your father if you want."

"No." Tony yelled "Don't call my father, please don't call him."

"It's ok kid, relax. I won't call him if you don't want me to." Gibbs assured. "What's your name?"

"Anthony DiNozzo." Tony replied hesitantly as he scanned the area. "But I like Tony better."

"Alright Tony" Gibbs replied with a smile and pointed over to a nearby bench. "That's my wife and daughter over there. Will you come over with me?"

"No I don't think so." Tony replied as he looked at the red haired woman and the brown haired girl sitting on the bench watching them. "I should be going."

"Tony, I know something is wrong." Gibbs sighed. "My wife wants' to make sure that you are alright. She's worried about you."

"Ok." Tony relented and followed Gibbs over to the bench.

"This is my wife Jenny and our daughter Abby." Gibbs introduced them "This here is Tony."

"It's very nice to meet you Tony." Jenny greeted warmly." We were just about to have a picnic, would you like to join us?"

"Um, I don't want to intrude."

"You won't be." Jenny assured as she and Abby stood up from the bench. "Jethro can you grab the basket."

Tony looked confused until he saw Gibbs picking up the basket. He then followed the family down to the sand where Jenny spread out a blanket and Gibbs set the basket down. It was a lovely spring day and there were a lot of families on the beach. Tony hesitantly sat down beside Abby who was watching him the entire time.

"So um, where are you from." Tony asked awkwardly. "Are you here on vacation?"

"We live in D.C." Gibbs replied as he and Jenny started laying out the food. "And yes we are on a vacation. Are you from here?"

"Yes I live here with my father." Tony replied "I'm home for a few weeks on holiday from school."

"Do you go to boarding school?" Abby asked in awe. "That's so cool."

"Ah yeah." Tony replied with a small smile. "It's ok."

"Does your mom not live with you?" Abby asked.

"She died a few years ago." Tony replied sadly.

"Oh, my mum and dad died too." Abby added sadly.

"Oh." Tony replied and looked at Gibbs and Jenny confused.

"We adopted Abby just over a month ago." Jenny explained "We came here on vacation to get to know each other a bit better."

"That's nice." Tony smiled "I should leave you to get to know each other. I don't want to be in the way."

"Please stay." Abby begged "It's nice to have someone nearly my age to talk to."

"Alright." Tony sighed "What age are you?"

"I'm nine and three months." Abby grinned. "What age are you."

"I'm nearly ten." Tony replied happily "Well I'll be ten in June."

"Really." Jenny asked in surprise. "I thought you were younger than Abby, seven or eight at the most."

"I'm small for my age." Tony sighed unhappily "But I really am nearly ten."

"We believe you Tony." Gibbs assured "How is your arm feeling."

"It's fine." Tony shrugged.

"What happened?" Abby asked.

"Um nothing." Tony lied and looked away fearing they would find out and cause his father to be angry.

"Did your Father hurt you Tony?" Gibbs asked softly. He had notice how scared Tony became when his father was mentioned.

Tony's head snapped up and he looked shocked at Gibbs and Jenny. He stood up quickly and started backing away. "I have to go."

"Wait, Tony." Gibbs said and hurried after the boy. "Come back Tony."

"Please don't say anything to my father." Tony begged as he stopped walking. "It'll only make it worse."

"Come back Tony." Gibbs said worried about the boy, he had seen child abuse before and Tony showed the typical behaviour. "I promise I won't say anything to get you in trouble."

"Ok." Tony relented and returned with Gibbs.

"Are you ok?" Jenny asked as Tony hesitantly sat down.

Tony nodded but didn't speak.

"Help yourself to whatever you want to eat." Jenny said as she started eating a sandwich.

Abby picked up a sandwich, so Tony did the same and they all started eating. Tony didn't eat much and nobody wanted to push him too much, so they let him be.

When the food was finished Jethro and Jenny tidied away the containers and the leftovers. When that was done they sat back down and looked over at Tony, who was avoiding their looks.

"Why did your father hurt you Tony?" Gibbs asked after a few minutes of awkward silence.

Tony sighed and looked at all the other families playing happily in the sand. "I got a B in Math." He admitted after a minute. "I tried to tell him that I wasn't feeling well during the exam and I had to go to the nurse's office before it finished, but he doesn't care."

"Can I see your arm Tony?" Jenny asked softly. "I want to make sure it's ok."

Tony nodded and let Jenny help him to remove his sweater. Jenny gasped when she saw his arm. A large bruise was beginning to appear, circling his bicep. His wrist was bruised and swollen.

"Does it hurt anywhere else?" Gibbs asked as he looked at the injuries in horror.

"My, um, chest a bit." Tony admitted softly.

"Tony, your wrist is broken." Jenny said softly "We need to get you to the hospital to get it fixed."

"No, it's' ok." Tony protested. "My father will get mad."

"I'm not going to let him hurt you Tony." Gibbs assured. "I'm a federal agent and so is Jenny. We can make it so you never have to see your father again."

Tony looked at them in shock. He didn't think he could just leave his father, after all he was his father and you are supposed to stay with your parents until you are an adult. It didn't make sense to Tony. He wasn't even sure if wanted to leave his father.

"I know this is scary Tony." Jenny added pulling him from his thoughts "But no parent should ever hurt their children the way your father hurt you. It's wrong for him to hurt you Tony."

"But I...I...I got a B so he had to punish me." Tony protested.

"He still shouldn't hit you." Abby butted in. "I got B's before and I never got hit."

"Really?" Tony asked in shock, "Then how were you punished."

"I wasn't." Abby replied "A B isn't a bad grade Tony."

"My father thinks it is." Tony sighed "He gets mad if I don't get A's."

"Has he hurt you before?" Gibbs asked

Tony nodded reluctantly.

"Does he hit you a lot?" Jenny asked.

"I'm not home that much." Tony replied "I only come home from boarding school on holidays and I spend most of the summer at camp."

"But he hits you when you are home." Jenny pushed.

"Yeah." Tony replied.

"I think we should get you to the hospital." Gibbs said and stood up.

"I don't want to go to the hospital." Tony protested. "I don't like hospitals. I...I...Please don't make me go."

"We'll stay with you Tony, you won't be alone." Gibbs assured and squeezed Tony shoulder before he went to pick up the blanket.

The others followed his lead and they quickly shook the sand off the blanket and folded it up. Gibbs led the way to their car and they all climbed in. Horrible thoughts were running through Tony's head as he watched the family. One of the cooks had tried to stop his father from beating him a few years ago and the cook was fired and the same with some of his nannies. He didn't want that to happen to these people, they had been nothing but nice to him.

"Maybe I should just go home." Tony said as they started to pull out of the parking lot. "My father has a lot of money and could cause a lot of trouble. I don't want you to get into trouble."

"We are willing to risk it for you." Jenny assured as she turned around to look at the injured boy. "We won't let him hurt you again Tony."

Tony nodded but didn't believe that they could stop his father from hurting him. He sat quietly in the back of the car with Abby, as they made their way through traffic to the nearest hospital.

Everyone went into the emergency room and sat down to wait for Tony to be called. There were some cartoons on the TV which Tony and Abby watched to keep themselves from being bored. Gibbs went outside while they were occupied and made a call to the police and also to his team at NCIS. He needed to document the injuries that Tony had sustained so that they could get the child away from his father.

By the time they were called, two police officers had arrived. They went with Gibbs and Tony, while Jenny and Abby stayed in the waiting room. The doctor came in and took a quick look at Tony before ordering x-rays of wrist and of his ribs.

Tony was terrified and was shaking as he sat on the bed waiting to be brought to x ray. The cops took pictures of Tony injuries and took a statement from Gibbs while they waited. The doctor returned and brought the terrified child down to x-ray and quickly took the required pictures. Gibbs was waiting outside the door for them and quickly assured Tony that everything was ok.

Tony was returned to his cubicle and gave his statement to the cops. Tony was afraid that they would tell his father and he would get an even worse beating when he was brought home, but Gibbs kept encouraging him to tell what had happened. After taking Tony statement they waited for the doctor, who returned a few minutes later with the x-ray films.

"Tony's wrist is broken." The doctor said. "He has two cracked ribs and some heavy bruising which is just starting to appear. I should be able to set the wrist without surgery.

"Good." Gibbs sighed in relief. "Can you write up a full report on his injuries and give them to the police."

"Yes of course." The doctor replied "This is a very obvious case of child abuse and there is scaring to suggest this isn't the first time it has happened."

Gibbs looked over at Tony who had his head down, refusing to make eye contact "I'd have to agree with you there Doc."

"I'll be back in a few minutes Tony." The doctor said and motioned for Gibbs to follow him outside "I need to get the things for your cast."

"I'll be back in a few minutes Tony." Gibbs said. "I'm just going to tell Jenny and Abby what's going on."

"Um ok." Tony said hesitantly

Gibbs followed the doctor and the two cops outside and they moved a bit away from the door.

"What's wrong?"

"Who has been beating Tony?" The doctor asked worriedly

"His father, by the looks of it." One of the cops replied.

"You need to make sure that the boy does not go back to him." The doctor stressed. "From the x-rays and scarring I've seen I'm surprised the boy hasn't been more seriously injured. He doesn't need to stay in the hospital, but I will not release him until you can guarantee that his father will not get anywhere near him."

"We can take him and have him put in a group home." One of the cops suggested.

"I'll take him." Gibbs volunteered "We are registered as foster parents, have your department check us out. Both my wife and I are federal agents and can offer protection for Tony."

"That's a lot to do for a boy you just met." The other cop said. "But if that's what you want then that's what we'll do. We'll need you and your wife to come to the station to sign some documents."

"That's fine." Gibbs replied. "I'll just inform my wife and as soon as Tony has his cast we'll meet you there."

"Sounds good." The cop replied as they left the hospital.

Gibbs quickly informed Jenny of what was going on and then hurried back to where Tony waiting. When he entered the cubicle he saw a look of relief flash across Tony's face.

"Are you alright?" he asked

"Yeah, I ah, I just thought you weren't coming back." Tony admitted.

"I'm not leaving you." Gibbs assured just as the doctor entered.

"Are you allergic to any medicines Tony?" The doctor asked as he prepared a syringe.

"Um no, I don't think so. What are you doing with that?" Tony asked worriedly as he eyed the syringe.

"I need to give you something to help with the pain." The doctor explained. "It might hurt a bit when I fix your wrist."

Tony nodded and the doctor injected the contents. Gibbs sat beside Tony and held him while the doctor started putting the cast on Tony's wrist. Tony gasped occasionally as the doctor manipulated his wrist. Soon Tony's entire forearm was covered in white plaster and was supported in a sling. His ribs had also been strapped up tightly.

"Thanks for everything Doc." Gibbs said "I appreciate it."

"It was no problem. I have the report here if you want to bring it to the station with you."

"Yeah that would be great." Gibbs replied "Do I need to do anything for Tony."

"If he's hurting, give him some Children's Tylenol. The shot I gave him should do him for a while."

They both smiled as Tony looked at them with a dopey smile.

"They seem to be working." The doctor said and shook Gibb's hand. "Let me know if you need anything else."

"Thanks Doc." Gibbs said as he helped Tony off the bed. "Come on Tony lets go."

"Okey Dokey" Tony replied with a silly grin. "Where are we goin'?"

"We are going to collect Jenny and Abby." Gibbs replied as he led Tony to the waiting room.

"Hey Tony are you ok." Abby asked as she ran towards them.

"I'm fine." Tony grinned

"Why is he smiling like that?" Abby asked Jenny

"They gave him some pain killers." Gibbs explained. "Come on let's get going."

Abby nodded and the four of them made their way out to the car. Gibbs buckled Tony in before getting into the driving seat and speeding off.

Tony sat in the back of the car watching the three strangers that were being nicer to him than his father ever had been. He'd been afraid before the doctor had given him the injection but now he was feeling kind of floaty and happy. He knew it wasn't going to last but he enjoyed it while he could.

They arrived at the police department within 15 minutes and Jenny and Gibbs quickly signed the required papers. Gibbs handed over the doctor's report and gave them his contact details. They would be returning to DC tomorrow and they needed to have everything arranged so that Tony could go with them. Gibbs didn't know why but he felt close to this boy and needed to protect him.

With everything complete, they left the police department and got back into the car. The day had gone very quickly and it was nearing dinner time. Gibbs drove the car back to the hotel and the four of them walked to a nearby diner.

"What do you want to eat Tony?" Jenny asked kindly.

"Can I pick anything?" Tony asked hesitantly.

"Anything that's on the menu." Gibbs confirmed

"Even pizza?" Tony asked in awe.

"Yes even pizza." Jenny assured "Have you ever had pizza before Tony?"

"My father didn't allow me to have it. But I've seen people eating it on TV and I'd really like to try it."

"Well you can order it if you want." Abby added "Gibbs and Jenny are really nice."

"Ok." Tony grinned happily. "There are so many types, I don't know which to get."

"I'm getting sausage and cheese pizza." Abby said. "You can try some if you want."

"I'm getting the Hawaiian pizza." Jenny said. "You can try some of mine too."

"I'm getting the meat feast." Gibbs added.

"Can I get the pepperoni?" Tony asked.

"Of course." Jenny replied and Gibbs placed their orders with the waitress.

The pain killers were starting to wear off and Tony was feeling a bit sore again. He tried to hide that he was in pain, his father had told him it was a weakness to show pain and Tony had become very good at hiding it.

"Are you alright Tony?" Abby asked  
"Yeah I'm fine." Tony replied with a smile as their drinks were placed on the table.

Gibbs and Jenny shared a glance but said nothing. A few minutes later their pizzas were placed in front of them.

"Dig in Tony." Gibbs said with a grin when he saw Tony's wide eyes taking in the food in front of him.

Tony picked up a slice and quickly bit into it, while the other all watched him.

"Mmm this is really good." Tony said after he had swallowed. "Thanks for getting me pizza."

"You are very welcome Tony." Jenny said with a sad smile. She could not believe that a father wouldn't allow a child to try a food like pizza. She knew it wasn't healthy to have it all the time, but every so often was ok. She picked up a slice of pizza from her own plate and put it on Tony's. Tony grinned and handed her a slice of his pizza. Abby and Gibbs grinned and quickly handed over a slice of their pizza and accepted some of his.

Tony took a bite of each and then started trying different variations while other looked on amused. Tony occasionally stopped eating to take a drink, but didn't stop to talk. When he was finished he sat back and grinned happily. "That was the best dinner ever."

"Glad you enjoyed it." Gibbs said with a smile as he paid the bill. "Let's get back to the hotel; it's been a long day."

"Um, am I...I mean, do I, what about me?" Tony stuttered.

"You're staying with us." Jenny assured. "Don't worry; we are going to take care of you."

"Um ok." Tony replied. He didn't understand why these people were being so nice to him but for now he was going to go along with it. They strolled back to the hotel at leisurely pace and Tony was getting more nervous the closer they got to the building. When they reached the hotel, Tony followed the family to their room. Tony entered behind Gibbs and looked around the large family room. There was one double bed and two single beds.

"You can take the bed near the window." Gibbs said softly as he nodded in the direction of the bed.

Tony gave a soft smile and walked over to the bed and sat down. Abby jumped onto her bed with a bug smile and settled back against the headboard. "This is going to be fun. I've never had a brother."

Tony's head snapped up in shock as he looked at Abby and then at the two adults.

"Um what do you mean?" Tony asked hesitantly

"Well if you're gonna stay with us then you are going to be my brother." Abby explained slowly. "That's how it works; you'll be part of the family."

"You want me to be part of your family?" Tony gasped.

"Yes of course Tony." Jenny replied as she sat on the edge of Abby's bed facing Tony. "You can't go back to your father after what he has done to you, so someone needs to take care of you. We want to take care of you, that is, if you want us to."

"You really want to keep me?" Tony asked in surprise. "Why would you want to keep me, I'm just a useless brat."

"You are not Tony." Jenny argued "Did your father tell you that?"

Tony nodded slightly and looked down at the floor.

"Your father is a horrible man Tony" Jenny continued as she took Tony's hand in hers "You are a very brave, smart and polite boy. Your father is blind if he cannot see that. When we adopted Abby we had planned to adopt again, maybe not quite so soon, but now that you are here, we want you as part of the family."

"I don't know what to say." Tony replied meekly.

"If this isn't what you want, just say so." Gibbs added. "We want you as part of our family but only if you are comfortable with it."

"I do, I am." Tony assured "I just, I'm not used to this."

"To what?" Abby asked confused as she moved nearer to Jenny.

"To people wanting me around." Tony answered softly. "My father never wanted me near him and when my mother was alive she only wanted to show me off and then sent me away with a nanny."

"Well we want you Tony." Abby assured with a smile. "I really want a brother."

"Thanks." Tony replied with a small smile.

"Do you want to take a shower Tony?" Gibbs asked as he started pulling out some clothes and towels.

"Um, I don't have anything with me."

"That's alright." Gibbs assured "You can borrow one of my t-shirts and the two police officers are going to bring by some of your things in the morning."

"Ok." Tony replied and got up from the bed.

He took the clothes and towels from Gibbs and went through the door to the bathroom. Gibbs followed him and helped him to wrap his cast so it wouldn't get wet.

"Call me if you need me." Gibbs said stepping out of the room to give the boy some privacy.

As soon as he heard the water start Gibbs sat down on his and Jenny's bed with a sigh.

"He's not had an easy life." Jenny said as she sat beside her husband.

"No he hasn't"

"We'll do what we can to help him." Jenny assured "We will do whatever we have to do to keep him. We will fight his father if we have to."

"Yeah." Abby added.

A few minutes later the shower stopped and Abby started gathering her things. Just as she had everything ready, the door open and Tony walked out wearing a much too big t-shirt and boxers.

"Your turn Abby." Jenny said and Abby hurried into the bathroom. "Come over here Tony and I'll dry your hair."

"I can manage." Tony argued.

"I know you can but I want to."

Tony nodded hesitantly and sat down beside Jenny who had pulled out a hair brush and hairdryer. She gently brushed Tony's hair and started drying it. Tony eyes closed as Jenny gently massaged his scalp while she dried his hair. By the time she was finished he was leaning against her nearly falling asleep. Jenny had just turned off the hair dryer as Abby came out of the bathroom dressed in her pyjamas. Tony's eyes snapped open and pulled away from Jenny, embarrassed by his actions. He got up and walked over to his bed. Abby sat down in Tony's vacated seat as Gibbs took his turn in the bathroom. After Abby's hair was dry she bounced onto her bed and Jenny took her turn in the bathroom. Gibbs got some fresh bandaged and re wrapped Tony's ribs for him, while Abby bounced on her bed.

"I think it's time for bed." Gibbs said after he finished with Tony's ribs and Jenny had finished getting ready.

Tony nodded and climbed under his covers as did Abby. Tony turned on his side and rested his arm on a pillow. He had just closed his eyes when he felt someone standing over him. He opened his eyes and saw both Jenny and Gibbs standing over his bed. Jenny leaned down and gently started tucking the blankets around Tony.

"What...what are you doing?" Tony asked in surprise.

"I'm just tucking you in." Jenny explained. "Haven't you ever been tucked in before?"

Tony shook his head no as Jenny continued.

"Goodnight kiddo." Gibbs said as he ruffled Tony's hair.

"Goodnight Tony." Jenny added and gave him a kiss on the forehead.

Tony smiled at them both and again closed his eyes. He felt safe with these people, he didn't know why but this was the safest he had ever felt.

* * *

A/N: So this is my new story. It is going to take a while for updates as it's not even nearly completed but I have a few people asking for me to post it here. Hope you enjoy it.


	2. Chapter 2

The following morning arrived with a lot of activity. The two cops from the day before knocked at the door very early. Nobody was awake yet. Gibbs got out of bed and went outside to talk to them. Abby and Jenny got up and started getting ready, while Tony stayed on his bed waiting for some clothes. Gibbs returned to the room after more than 10 minutes carrying two large suitcases. Gibbs set the two cases down and then sat beside Tony.

"They arrested your father last night on charges of child abuse." Gibbs said softly to Tony. "He'd been drinking when they arrived and hadn't even noticed you were missing."

Tony nodded, not surprised by this.

"When they tried to arrest him, he fought them." Gibbs continued. "They were leading him down the steps to the police car when he tried to break free. His hands were cuffed behind his back and he fell down the steps."

Gibbs paused to make sure Tony understood what he was saying. Tony nodded and Gibbs continued.

"One of the cops also fell and landed on your father. Your father was brought to the hospital but he was dead by the time they got there."

"Oh." Tony said "Do I still get to stay with you."

"Yes of course." Gibbs assured as Jenny sat beside Tony. "We will do everything we can to keep you with us."

"Ok." Tony replied with a smile.

"You can get dressed and then we can go for some breakfast." Jenny said. "Our flight isn't for another few hours."

Tony nodded and pulled a few things from one of the cases and went to the bathroom to change.

"Are we going to have any problems?" Jenny asked as soon as the door closed. "Does he have any other family?"

"Everything should be ok." Gibbs assured. "His mother's family are in England and I don't think his father's family will cause any problems."

"That's good." Jenny sighed just as Tony came out of the room. "Are you ready to go Tony?"

"Yeah." Tony replied with a smile and the four of them left the room.

They went to the restaurant in the hotel and sat at a table. Tony was amazed by the variety of foods available but settled for pancakes. He very rarely got to have those at home so was looking forward to them. The food was served quickly and they all started eating what they had ordered.

"Did you enjoy your breakfast Tony?" Jenny asked when they had all finished.

"Yeah it was great. I never get to have pancakes."

"What do you normally have for breakfast?" Abby asked curiously.

"When I'm at school they normally just give us cereal and fruit." Tony explained. "When I'm at home the cook normally just gives me toast or oatmeal."

"You have a cook." Abby gasped.

"My father does, or did." Tony replied. "What's going to happen to his company now?"

"I'm not sure." Gibbs replied "The lawyers will look at his will and see who he left everything to."

"That's good." Tony replied.

"We should get going." Gibbs said as he paid the bill. "We need to pack and then get to the airport."

"It takes a while to get to the airport from here." Tony agreed.

With that the four of them returned to the hotel room and started packing. Tony was already packed so he helped Abby. Soon they were all ready and after they checked out, they got into a cab and headed for the airport. Gibbs had called ahead and booked an extra seat for Tony, so when they arrived they quickly checked in and went to the departure lounge.

They didn't have to wait long before their flight was called and soon they were in the air flying to Washington. Tony was very quiet during the flight. He had a lot to think about and was a bit nervous about what was going to happen when they landed.

When they finally disembarked the plane, they quickly collected their bags and then went to the car park to Gibbs car. Tony was surprised to see a large, black people carrier. Gibbs put their bags in the trunk and they all climbed into the car. The drive wasn't too long but Tony was a bag of nerves the entire way. His nervousness increased when they pulled up in front of a big suburban house, with a white picket fence and roses growing in the garden. It wasn't as big as the mansion he grew up in.

Tony grabbed one of his suitcases while Gibbs took the other. Gibbs led the way up the steps and Tony shyly followed and stood awkwardly in the hall way.

"Come on and I'll show you your room." Abby said as she started running up the stairs.

Tony looked at Gibbs for permission and at Gibbs' nod he hurried up the stairs after Abby. He followed Tony into a large room with a double bed, wardrobe, desk and lockers filling it.

"This will be your room." Abby said with a big smile. "There are other rooms but this is the best and the only one with furniture at the moment."

"This room is great." Tony said as he looked around. "It's way better than my room at school."

"What about the one in your old house." Abby asked as she sat down on the bed.

"I didn't like my room." Tony admitted as he sat down beside her. "My Mother decorated it and it had a big four poster bed with curtains. I wasn't allowed to have any toys or anything in there."

"Oh, well Gibbs and Jenny are really nice and they'll let you have toys in here if you want them." Abby assured with a smile. "Do you want to see my room?"

"Yeah sure." Tony replied as Abby jumped up from the bed.

Tony quickly got up and followed her to a door across the hall. He walked into a very girly room which surprised him

"Gibbs and Jenny decorated it before I moved in." Abby explained when she saw Tony's surprise. "They said I could change it, but I kind of like it now. I feel like a princess."

"That's really nice of them." Tony said. "Are they really as nice as they seem."

"Yeah they seem to be." Abby replied "I've only been with them for two months and they've been great. I was staying with my aunt for two months before that and it was horrible. She was old and didn't really take care of me."

"How did your parents die?" Tony asked softly.

"They were killed in a car crash." Abby whispered softly. "It was New Years day and there was some guy who was drinking and he hit the car. They wouldn't tell me what happened after that but I know it was bad."

"How?" Tony asked as they both sat down on Abby's bed

"There was a junk yard near my house and I used to sneak in there and look at the wrecked cars. I saw how bad they were after crashes." Abby explained. "I really don't want to think about them being hurt, so I try not to think about it."

"It's ok. I understand." Tony assured. "You don't have to talk about it."

"Thanks Tony." Abby replied "So um, how did your mum die."

"She had some cancer thing." Tony replied. "She was sick for a while before she died but I didn't see her much anyway. I'm sorry your parents died."

"I'm sorry yours died." Abby added.

"I'm not." Tony replied and Abby's head snapped up. "I know that sounds horrible but they were really mean and I hated when I had to come home from school. My Mother was nearly as bad as my Father. She was always drinking and she got angry a lot."

"I'm sorry Tony." Abby said and laid her head on his shoulder.

"Me too." Tony added with a sigh.

They stayed like that for a few minutes until there was a soft knock on the door. Both kids looked up to see Jenny and Gibbs watching them.

"Is everything ok?" Gibbs asked.

"Yeah." They both replied together and started giggling.

"Glad you two are getting on so well." Jenny said. "We brought up your bags so the two of you can start unpacking while I cook dinner. Is your room ok Tony?"

"Yeah it's great. I really like it."

"I'm glad. You can decorate it yourself; we can pick out paint in a week or so." Jenny added. "We want you to feel at home."

"Thanks." Tony replied as he got up and went to his room.

His two bags were on his bed and were opened. It was going to be awkward with just one arm but he opened the wardrobe and pulled out some hangers and sat beside his suitcase.

"Do you want a hand with those?" Gibbs asked as he walked into the room. "It'll be hard with your arm in a cast."

"Um yeah ok." Tony replied hesitantly, hating that he needed help. "I was just going to put them on hangers and put them up if that's ok."

"That's fine Tony. How about I put them on the hangers and you can hang them up."

"Thanks." Tony replied with a small smile, his thoughts running a mile a minute. He was finding it hard to believe that this family was being so nice to him and not expecting anything in return. He took the clothes handed to him by Gibbs and carefully hung them up. They continued in silence for nearly ten minutes, both lost in their own thoughts, Finally Gibbs broke the silence.

"We heard you talking to Abby."

"I'm sorry." Tony said quickly thinking he had done something wrong. "I didn't mean to upset her."

"That's alright Tony, we're not mad. In fact we are very pleased."

"Oh." Tony asked in surprise, he really didn't understand these people.

"Yeah, it's the first time she's actually spoken about her parent's death." Gibbs explained as he continued handing Tony the clothes to hang up. "She wouldn't talk to anyone; we've tried to get her to talk to a lot of people, therapists and doctors. She likes you and we are all very happy you are here with us."

"Um thanks." Tony replied surprised by what Gibbs had told him. "I don't like talking to therapists or doctors so maybe Abby's the same."

"Why don't you like talking to them?"

"Well I s'pose cos they're adults. It's harder to talk to an adult. Abby probably talked to me cos we have stuff in common."

"Have you talked to many therapists or doctors?" Gibbs asked as he started sorting through Tony socks

"Um, yeah a few." Tony replied as he started putting the socks into a drawer. "Some other people saw my bruises and I had to talk to the doctor at school and to the councilor."

"What happened when you spoke to them?" Gibbs asked as he handed Tony his underwear to put away.

"They called my father and then when I got home my father was angry and well, I got more bruises." Tony replied with a sigh. "After that I didn't really talk to anyone about it."

"I get it Tony." Gibbs said as he stood up. "Come on lets go get some food. Jenny should have dinner ready by now."

Tony nodded and followed Gibbs to Abby's room and then the three of them went down stairs. The smell was delicious as they entered the kitchen, where they saw Jenny putting the food onto plates.

"Jethro, can you get some glasses." Jenny said as she saw them coming. She smiled happily at her growing family. "Dinner is just ready. Abby can you please get the cutlery and you and Tony can set the table."

"Sure." Abby replied and they three quickly went about their assigned tasks. Within minutes the table was set and dinner was served. The four of them set down and with a nod from Jenny they started eating.

"I forgot to ask you Tony." Jenny said after a few minutes of eating. "Are there any foods you are allergic to or anything that you don't like?"

"Um I don't think I'm allergic to anything." Tony replied nervously as he swallowed some potatoes. His parents didn't care if there were any foods he didn't like and at school you didn't get much choice.

"Is there something you don't like?" Gibbs pushed when Tony didn't answer.

"I um don't really like peppers or cauliflower." Tony admitted "But I'll eat them if you give them to me. I don't want to be any trouble."

"It's alright Tony; we won't make you eat anything you don't like." Jenny assured, shocked that this child had obviously been made to eat things he didn't like. "Besides, Abby doesn't really like peppers either and Jethro hates cauliflower. I expect you to try everything you are given but if you don't like it, all you have to do is tell me."

"Um ok." Tony replied surprised by how reasonable that sounded.

"Is Tony going to be in my class at school?" Abby asked happily "Cos that would be cool."

"I suppose so." Jenny replied thoughtfully. "I'll call Tony's old school and get his grades sent and I'll contact your school to enroll him. Are you in third or fourth grade?"

"Um I'm in fifth." Tony replied embarrassedly. "I um skipped a grade last year."

"Really, that's great Tony." Gibbs said. "You must be very smart."

"No not really. I was made to study a lot at school and during the holidays. My father preferred that I was kept busy. I'd bet Abby is way smarter than me."

"I am smart." Abby agreed "But I missed out on a lot of school lately so I don't think I'll be skipping any grades this year."

"Maybe next year." Tony said softly.

"Yeah." Abby sighed. "I really like science and I want to enter the science fair but because I started in this school only a little while ago I didn't have time to do anything. It was on just before break."

"You can enter it next year and you'll do great." Tony said enthusiastically "You'll have a whole year to plan it. It'll be the best."

"Thanks Tony." Abby grinned happily. "It's a pity we won't be in the same school next year; at least we'll have a few months. I'm only in third grade."

"Yeah but that'll be nice." Tony grinned. He really was looking forward to starting school with normal kids with normal parents and not some rich spoilt kids.

"Did you like the dinner Tony?" Jenny asked after they had all finished.

"Yeah it was really good." Tony replied. "The food at school is only ok. Sometimes it's nice but mostly the potatoes are lumpy and the meat is dry. I never really liked the food at home."

"Well here we try to make the food nice but I can't always guarantee it." Gibbs said with a smile "Jenny sometimes burns things."

"I do not." Jenny argued good naturedly. "Sometimes things may be a little over done."

Abby started giggling and Gibbs chuckled while Tony tried to suppress a laugh. Tony was really enjoying spending time with this family. His own family never laughed or had fun at the dinner table. Dinner time was a very serious time in the DiNozzo house hold and it was something Tony would not miss.

"Time to clean up." Jenny said as she stood and started picking up plates. "Abby can you clear off the dishes and Jethro you can start the wash up."

"What can I do?" Tony asked.

"You're hurt Tony." Jenny said softly. "For now you can watch some TV in the living room. When your arm is out of the cast you can help with clean up. You need to rest; it's been a long few days."

"Ok." Tony agreed hesitantly and went to living room.

He sat quietly on the couch afraid to turn on the TV. His father would not let him watch TV in the living room so he was reluctant to turn on the TV even though he had been told he could. Although he was glad to be away from his father, he was still worried about what was going to happen. The Gibbs' were so different from every family he had ever known and he wasn't sure how to act around them. Tony was so lost in his own thoughts that he didn't notice his new family entering the room.

"Are you ok Tony?" Jenny asked, startling Tony and causing him to jump from the seat.

"I'm sorry." Tony apologised, embarrassed by his actions "I didn't hear you."

"Don't worry about it Tony." Jenny assured as she took a seat on the couch.

Tony sat back down as Gibbs took his seat and Abby turned on the TV. Gibbs flicked through the channels as Abby sat down beside Tony. Gibbs turned on the news and they all started watching. Tony jumped in shock as he saw he's father's picture on the TV. Gibbs turned up the volume and they listened to the news report on the death of Anthony DiNozzo Sr. The report mentioned an heir to the fortune but didn't actually mention Tony by name, which everyone was grateful for. When the news was over, Gibbs switched off the TV.  
"What does it mean that I'm his heir?" Tony asked after a minute.

"What it normally means is that you would get his money and house and business," Jenny explained. "But we'll have to speak to your father's lawyer first."

"Oh." Tony replied. "Can I go to bed, I'm tired."

"Of course you can Tony." Jenny said "Do you know where the bathroom is."

"Yes thank you. Goodnight and um Thanks for everything."  
You are very welcome Tony." Jenny called as Tony left the room.

The three glanced worriedly at each other, knowing it was going to take time for Tony to learn to trust them. But they were all willing to wait for as long as it would take.

* * *

A/N: Thank you so much for all of the reviews and follows and favorites.


	3. Chapter 3

The next few weeks passed very quickly for everyone. Tony was enrolled in the local Middle school and he settled in very quickly. The school year was coming to an end and Tony had already covered most of what they were doing in school so he found it easy enough. Gibbs and Jenny spent a lot of time with their lawyers sorting everything out, which is where they were when they got a call from the school to collect Tony. There was only two weeks of school left and everything had been going very well so far so they were surprised by the call.

"We were called for Tony DiNozzo." Gibbs said to the secretary as they entered the school.

"Oh yes he is with the school nurse." The secretary informed him as she started walking down the hall. "Follow me and I will bring you to him. From what I can tell he was feeling ill this morning and just after lunch he threw up. The nurse said he has a temperature and she suspects he has a cold."

"Did he ask to leave class?" Jenny asked as they hurried along with her.

"Oh no. The teacher had to bring him to the nurse. Tony kept insisting that he was fine."

"That sounds about right." Gibbs said gruffly thinking about the many times over the past month that Tony insisted he was fine when they knew he wasn't.

"Here we are." the secretary said as she pushed open the door to the infirmary.

They walked into the small room to find Tony curled up on one of the beds with the nurse standing over him.

"Tony." Gibbs called as they moved closer to the child.

Tony slowly opened his eyes and looked frightened at Jenny and Gibbs. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to disrupt your day."

"There's nothing to be sorry for. You didn't disrupt anything" Gibbs assured as he gently rubbed Tony's head. "Come on let's get you home."

"Um ok." Tony replied with a sniffle.

Gibbs helped Tony off the bed and thanked the nurse, before the three of them made their way to the car. Gibbs helped Tony into the car before he and Jenny climbed in.

"Should we take him to the hospital?" Jenny asked as she worriedly looked back at Tony who was starting to fall asleep. "We don't have a doctor for him yet?"

"Yeah ok we'll bring him to the hospital." Gibbs agreed and started the car.

"Please don't bring me to the hospital." Tony begged when he heard what they said. "Please I don't like hospitals or doctors."

Gibbs stopped the car and turned around to look at his soon to be son. Tony was shivering and his eyes were glassy but full of fear. Gibbs gut clenched when he saw the fear. No child should be that afraid and he didn't want to hurt Tony any further.

"We won't go to the hospital." Gibbs assured "But we need to take you to a doctor. You're sick and we need to get you medicine."

"Please." Tony cried as a tear rolled down his cheek.

"Ok Tony." Jenny relented as she saw the fear in Tony's eyes. "Let's just get him home Jethro. We can talk about it more there. Just relax Tony. We'll have you home in a few minutes."

Tony nodded and closed his eyes again as Gibbs turned the car back on and started the drive home.

When they pulled into the drive, Tony was fast asleep so Gibbs gently picked him up and carried him up to his bed room. Jenny gently took off Tony coat and shoes and then Gibbs lay him down on the bed, pulling the covers over him. Jenny took Tony's temperature before they left him to sleep.

"What are we going to do?" Jenny asked. "We can't bring him to the hospital if it's going to upset him so much."

"I could call Ducky and ask him to come over." Gibbs suggested. "He can tell us if we need to get him to the hospital."

"That's a good idea." Jenny agreed. "Hopefully he can come over straight away. I'm really worried about Tony."

"Me too." Gibbs agreed and picked up his phone. He quickly made a call to his friend and colleague Dr. Donald Mallard, the NCIS medical examiner. Ducky worked as a Doctor for many years before he became an ME and he still held his medical licence. Ducky knew a little of Tonys history, so upon receiving the call, he quickly dropped everything and made his way to the Gibbs' household.

"Jethro" Ducky called as he entered the house carrying his medical bag. "I'm here, where is my young patient."

"Thanks for coming Duck." Gibbs said as he greeted Ducky from the living room. "Tony's up in his room asleep."

"We need to wake him up and explain who you are." Jenny said as she led Ducky up the stairs. "He didn't want to see a doctor and was very scared about it."

"I understand my dear." Ducky replied. "I will wait outside until you have explained everything."

"Thanks Duck." Jethro said as they left him waiting outside Tony bedroom door.

They went into the room and Tony was still fast asleep with his blankets pulled tight around him. Jenny sat down beside him and gently brushed his hair off of his pale forehead.

"Tony honey, you need to wake up for me."

"Uh." Tony mumbled and opened his eyes. "What's wrong?"

"Tony, a friend of mine is here." Gibbs said softly. "He works with me at NCIS and he's kind of like a doctor but not really. Would you let him check you?"

"He's really nice." Jenny assured. "And we'll stay with you the whole time."

"I don't know." Tony replied worriedly. "I don't really like doctors."

"I know you don't Tony." Gibbs sighed "But we are really worried about you and we need to make sure you'll be ok. Ducky isn't like a normal doctor."

"Ducky, that's a funny name."

"Yeah it is. Can I bring him in?" Jenny asked.

"Ok I suppose. Can you please stay with me?"

"Yes of course." Jenny replied "Ducky can you come in now."

"Hello my dear boy. My name is Dr. Mallard but you can call me Ducky. Now I hear you are not feeling very well. Can you tell me what wrong?"

"Um, my head hurts a bit and I feel all stuffy and um really cold."

"Ok lad, would you mind if I take your temperature and blood pressure." Ducky asked. "I think it's just a little cold but I need to make sure."

Tony nodded and Ducky quickly took the readings as gently as possibly. Tony sat through it quietly and sat still while Ducky listened to his breathing.

"Are you still feeling like you are going to throw up?" Ducky asked as he noted all the readings.

"A little bit." Tony confirmed as he squirmed a little.

"It's seems to be just a cold." Ducky said to Jethro and Jenny. "You can give him some Tylenol for his temperature and headache. Make sure he stays hydrated, plenty of water or some warm tea. He is a little dehydrated and we don't want it to get worse. He most likely does not have much of an appetite but try him with some soup or toast. Now I can take some blood just to make sure it's nothing more."

"No." Tony yelped and moved as far away from Ducky as possible. "No needles, please. I'll be fine really. I'll go back to school and won't be any trouble. I promise I'll be good."

"Calm down Tony." Gibbs said gently as he sat beside Tony. "It's ok, no needles and you won't be going back to school for a few days until you are better. It's the weekend tomorrow any way."

"No needles?" Tony asked cautiously.

"No needles." Gibbs assured gently, wondering why he was so upset about needles. He knew kids didn't like injections but he had never seen a reaction like that. He gently reached for Tony and pulled him into a hug. Tony was very tense in his arms but after a few minutes he relaxed slightly.

Jenny left the room and grabbed some water and Tylenol before returning

"Tony do you think you can take these pills for me."

Tony pulled away from Gibbs and looked at Jenny. He saw the two pills in her hand and the glass of water. Tony nodded and took the pills and put them into his mouth. He then quickly grabbed the glass of water and washed them down.

"Very good lad." Ducky said with a kind smile. "Now do you think you could handle a little bit of soup?"

"Um maybe." Tony replied with a shrug. "I'm a little but hungry."

"I'll go make some." Jenny said with a smile. "Abby should be home in a few minutes and we can all have some."

Jenny quickly made some chicken soup with some rolls. She had just loaded everything onto a tray when Abby came running through the door.

"Hey Abbs, how are you." Jenny asked cheerfully

"I'm good. So how come you are home so early, who's all that food for?"

"Tony is sick and we had to collect him from school." Jenny explained. "We are going to have some lunch up in his room."

"Oh poor Tony, he only just got his cast off and now he's sick." Abby sighed. "He did look a bit hinky this morning."

"Hinky?" Jenny asked with a grin "what does that mean."

"It means like weird or off, not quite right." Abby grinned "It's my new word. I really like it."

"It's great Abby. Let's get this food upstairs before it gets cold."

The two of them hurried up the stairs with two trays of food and drinks

"Hi Tony." Abby greeted as she set the tray down. "Jenny said you were sick."

"It's just a cold." Tony assured followed by a cough. "I'll be ok in a day or two. How was school today, how did your test go."

"School was good. I started talking to a few more people in my class so that was nice. The test went really well. The stuff you showed me came up and I think I knew it all. I really don't like history that much but I was really happy."

"That's great Abbs." Tony grinned as he took a few spoonfuls of soup. He had shown Abby an easier way to remember the dates of everything. It was something he had been shown by one of his many tutors and he wanted to help Abby. He had only taken a few mouthfuls of the soup when he started to feel sick again. He put down the bowl and leaned back against his pillows.

"Are you OK Tony?" Gibbs asked worriedly

"I feel a bit sick again." Tony admitted. "I don't think I can eat anymore."

"That's ok Tony." Jenny assured. "You tell me whenever you feel hungry and I'll get you something."

"Thanks Jenny." Tony said and started sneezing

"Bless you." Ducky said and seeing Tony's confused look. "Do you know where that saying came from? Well there are actually a few stories about it but the one I was told growing up was that your heart stops when you sneeze and people used to say God Bless you to encourage your heart to continue."

"That's weird." Abby said thoughtfully "but I suppose that long ago people didn't know much about the body and stuff."

"That is very true Abigail." Ducky agreed "Another story was that during the time of the plague, the pope at the time feared that the plague was nearing Rome and he ordered unending prayers to try keeping it away. It was believed that a sneeze was the first sign of the plague so they said God Bless You."

"The plague was really nasty." Tony said "We were doing it in history last week."

"Yes it was, only about 15% of people who contracted the plague survived." Ducky continued. "It was a very dark time. But thankfully the plague is no longer an issue for us. Now I think it is time we let young Anthony rest. I'm sure he is tired."

"Yeah a little bit." Tony agreed with a tired smile.

"Ok Tony, we'll leave you to get some sleep." Gibbs said as he and Jenny started gathering the dishes. "We'll be down stairs if you need anything, just call."

"Thanks." Tony replied with a yawn and pulled the covers back over him

"Hope you feel better Tony." Abby called softly as she closed his door.

Tony closed his eyes with a smile. He was amazed at how everyone was being nice to him even though he was sick and had messed up everyone's day. Every day he was more amazed by this family and how they treated him. Although he was still feeling horrible, he fell asleep with a smile on his face.

The rest of the day passed quickly for Tony as he spent most of it sleeping. He only woke occasionally when someone woke him to give him food, a drink or more pills. Everyone was very worried about him but Tony was oblivious to it.

* * *

A/N: Thank you so much for all of the reviews. I'm sorry I haven't had a chance to reply to all of them but I really appreciate them all.


	4. Chapter 4

Everyone was very relieved when Tony woke on his own the following morning and arrived down for breakfast.

"Good Morning Tony." Jenny greeted happily when she saw him. "How are you feeling this morning?"

"Um I'm ok." Tony replied. He was feeling a bit better but still felt horrible. "I don't feel as tired."

"Well that's good cos you slept like, all day yesterday." Abby teased as she took a bite of toast. "Are you going to be ok for the party today at Melissa's?"

"I don't know." Tony admitted worriedly, he really wanted to go to the party but he wasn't sure if he felt up to it. "Maybe."

"We'll have to see how he's feeling later." Gibbs said as he put some food in front of Tony. "It's not on until 1500 so you can have a nap before we go."

Tony nodded in agreement and started nibbling on his toast. He still wasn't that hungry but knew he had to eat something.

Tony stayed up for a while and watched some TV while the others busied themselves around the house and the garden. Jenny made some lunch and afterwards Tony walked up to bed and fell asleep almost instantly. Gibbs gently woke him up just before 3 and they got ready for the party.

The party was taking place a few houses away. Friends of Jenny and Gibbs were adopting their third child and they were having a party to welcome her. Chris and Jessica were unable to have kids of their own, so about seven years ago they had adopted a little girl called Melissa, who was now one of Abby's best friends. It was actually their influence that had lead to Jenny and Gibbs adopting Abby.

The four of them made their way to the house carrying some pies. There were a lot of people already at the house so they left the pies on a large table and after getting some drinks, they sat down in some empty chairs. Abby quickly ran off to find Melissa and Tony sat tiredly beside Gibbs and sipped at his glass of water.

"Jenny." Jessica greeted as she walked towards them carrying a little girl. "Thanks for coming, hi Gibbs, Tony,"

"Hey Jess." Gibbs replied as Tony gave a shy nod in greeting. "Thanks for having us."

"I'd like to introduce you to someone." Jessica said as she sat down beside Jenny. "This is Sarah, the newest addition to our family. Sarah, these are some of our good friends Jenny and Jethro Gibbs and this is Tony. He is being adopted, just like you."

"Um hi." The little girl greeted shyly and then turned back to Jessica. "Is Timmy coming to the party?"

"No honey." Jessica sighed. "Why don't you go play on the swings for a while?"

Sarah nodded and went over to the swings.

"Both Sarah and her brother were orphaned a few weeks ago." Jessica explained. "We wanted to take both of them but we don't have the room especially for a boy. Sarah is only 5 so she doesn't understand why he can't come with us. I don't know what to do. He's still at the group home and I don't know if I should bring her to visit. We didn't have these issues with the other two girls."

"It's hard separating siblings." Jenny sighed. "How did their parents die?"

"Their father was killed in action about six months ago. Chris had served with him for a short time a few years ago. Their Mom died a few weeks ago from a brain hemorrhage She dropped dead doing the grocery shopping. Luckily the kids were at school. It would have been very traumatic if they had been with her."

"Yeah it would have been horrible." Jenny agreed with a sigh and looked over at Tony, to see him falling asleep. "Jethro, maybe you should bring Tony home."

"Sorry." Tony mumbled tiredly "I won't fall asleep. No need to go home."

"It's ok Tony; we won't go home I just don't want you to fall." Jenny assured.

Gibbs turned around to Tony and picked him up, putting him in his lap. "Rest Tony." He ordered.

Tony nodded and leaned against Gibbs' strong chest before closing his eyes.

"Tony has a bit of a cold." Jenny explained. "He was sick at school yesterday and is very tired."

"Poor thing." Jessica smiled sadly. "How has he been settling in?"

"He seems to be getting on very well." Jenny replied with a smile as she looked at her soon to be son to make sure he was asleep. "He and Abby are getting on very well and he's settled into school well. He's very smart and seems to be very good at sports. He hasn't opened up at all about anything that has happened, which is a bit worrying and he still seems afraid of us at times."

"Well I'm sure it's going to take a while for him to get used to everything." Jessica assured. "I've never had to deal with an abused child but I'm sure you just need to give him some time and show him as much love as you can. I know that with abused children they need a lot more attention and assurances, especially like in Tony's case."

"Thanks Jess." Gibbs said with a smile, his thoughts on Tony. "You let us know if there is anything we can do to help you."

"Not unless you want to adopt another child." Jessica laughed and got up from her seat. "I'd better go say hi to a few people. I'll talk to you later."

"See you later Jess." Jenny called as her friend walked away, her thoughts on the little boy who had lost both his parents and then had his sister taken away.

"You're thinking about Sarah's brother aren't you?" Gibbs asked as he adjusted Tony in his arms.

"You know me so well Jethro. I just can't help thinking about him. He lost his parents one after the other and now he's lost his little sister and she's lost him. They are too young to understand all of this and it is just so sad."

"I know Jen, but really, what can we do. Tony's adoption still hasn't gone through, could we really take in another child. We don't even know what age he is."

"I don't know Jethro, it's just a thought. Maybe we could speak to our lawyer about it. Tony's adoption is going to take a long time to go through because of the circumstances. We may not be even able to foster another child."

"We'll talk to him on Monday." Gibbs sighed. "Maybe we can do something. But we need to talk to Abby and Tony before we do anything."

"Agreed." Jenny replied with a smile as she watched Abby play with Sarah at the swings. "Do you want some food? Chris is at the Barbeque."

"I'll stay here with Tony. I don't want to wake him."

"I'll bring you over something." Jenny grinned and headed for Chris.

"Hey Jenny." Chris greeted "Where's Jethro, I thought he'd be up here with me the second he arrived."

"Tony isn't feeling well and fell asleep in his arms." Jenny explained with a smile. "I'm going to bring him down some food."

"I'll be down to him in a few minutes." Chris replied as he filled up two plates with food. "Is this enough or do you want more."

"This is plenty, I don't think Tony will be eating and Abby can get some when she's ready"

"See you in a few minutes." Chris called as Jenny walked back to her seat.

Tony was still asleep in Gibbs arms when Chris joined them.

"Hey Gibbs." Chris greeted as he sat down with a relieved sigh. "How is the little guy?"

"His temperature seems to be going up again." Gibbs replied worriedly as he gently felt Tony forehead. "He doesn't want to go to the hospital. My friend Ducky who's a doctor checked him yesterday and said to give him Tylenol but he hasn't improved."

"It takes time Gibbs." Chris said kindly. "Have you taken his temperature? I can get the thermometer."

"We took it this morning." Jenny replied "It was the same as when Ducky took it yesterday."

"Hang on for a few minutes and I'll get my stuff and give him a quick check." Chris said and quickly ran inside. Chris was a medic with the Marines and after his medical discharge he started work as an EMT so he knew what he was doing.

Chris returned a minute later with Jessica and his kit. He took Tony's temperature gently and managed to do so without waking the child.

"His temperature is 102 degrees." Chris said when the thermometer beeped. "What was it this morning?"

"101.1." Jenny replied with a worried sigh. "What do you think we should do Chris?"

"Has he been drinking enough?"

"Not really." Gibbs replied. "He slept most of the day yesterday and for a few hours today so hasn't been drinking anything."

"You need to get some fluids into him to help get his temperature down." Chris advised. "I can set him up with an IV if he doesn't want to go to the hospital but he needs fluids."

"Hey Tony, wake up." Gibbs called and gently moved Tony slightly away from him. "Come on buddy, I need to talk to you for a minute."

"Huh." Tony mumbled as his bright green eyes slowly opened and looked up at Gibbs. "Are we going home?"

"No buddy not yet. Do you remember Chris, Melissa and Caroline's Dad?"

"Yeah." Tony mumbled and looked around nervously at everyone.

"Well do you remember that he's an EMT?" Gibbs asked

Tony nodded and moved nervously in Gibbs' arms. He didn't like where this was going.

"Well your temperature has gone up again and we need to give you some medicine. We need to give it to you through an IV which is a needle. We know you don't want to go to the hospital so Chris is going to put it in."

"I don't like needles." Tony whimpered and a tear fell down his face. "Please Gibbs I'll be good."

"Tony this isn't because you were bad." Jenny assured as she knelt down beside them. "We don't want to bring you to the hospital because you don't want to go, but we need you to get better and this will help."

"I promise it won't hurt, I'll be really gentle." Chris promised. "I have this special cream and you won't really feel it."

"Do I have to?" Tony moaned as another tear trickled down his face.

"Yeah Tony." Gibbs said apologetically

Tony gave a slight nod and clutched onto Gibbs shirt tightly. Gibbs stood up with Tony and carried him into the house and into the living room. He sat down on the couch and held Tony tightly against him. Chris gently took Tony's hand and started cleaning the top of it. Tony stiffened and started shaking waiting for the pain.

"Shhh, it's ok Tony." Gibbs said as he gently rubbed Tony's back trying to calm him down.

Chris gently applied a numbing cream and held onto Tony's hand as he waited for the cream to take effect. He prepared the IV and a bag of saline. After giving the cream time to work Chris started to insert the needle without changing the pressure he had on Tony's hand. Tony didn't feel anything and was shocked when Chris patted his leg and said he was done.

"See I told you it wouldn't hurt." Chris said with a smile. "Now I'm just going to start this medicine and it's going to flow into you. It'll help make you feel better."

"How long does this have to stay in my hand?" Tony asked as he stared at his hand.

"Just until all of the medicine is gone." Chris assured "Why don't you lie down on the couch and you can relax."

Tony stiffened in Gibbs arms and clutched onto Gibbs shirt.

"It's ok Tony, I'm not going anywhere." Gibbs assured as he settled back against the couch. "Go to sleep, I'll still be here when you wake up."

Tony nodded and loosened his grip on Gibbs. He shuffled in Gibbs lap and settled his head against Gibbs shoulder. Gibbs wrapped his arms around the boy and rubbed his back until Tony's breathing evened out and he fell asleep.

Gibbs stayed with Tony while he slept while the others went back out to the party. Chris returned when the saline had emptied and gently removed the IV port from Tony's hand. Gibbs decided to bring Tony home so he would be more comfortable. He carried Tony home and then put him to bed. Abby and Jenny returned home a few minutes later as they were both too worried about Tony to enjoy the rest of the party.

They were very relieved when Tony woke a few hours later and his temperature was down. That evening they made sure Tony ate some dinner and drank plenty of water.

The following morning, Tony was feeling even better again. He was still tired and had a temperature but he didn't spend too much time sleeping. He managed to eat at little bit at every meal and drank a lot of water. The next day was Monday and Tony woke at his normal time and stumbled down the stairs to have his breakfast.

"What are you doing up Tony?" Jenny asked when she him sitting down.

"Um I have school." Tony said hesitantly "It's Monday."

"You're not going to school today Tony." Jenny explained softly. "You are sick and you need time to get better."

"But I don't feel too bad."

"I know Tony but we don't want you to be sick again. We want you to get better."

"Um ok."

"Why don't you have some breakfast and go back to bed." Jenny said with a small smile. "I'll be here all day working from home so I'll be here when you wake."

"I'm sorry." Tony said fearfully. "I can go to school you don't need to take time off work."

"There's nothing to be sorry for Tony." Jenny assured the child as she poured out some cereal for Tony. "I want to stay here and take care of you. And you're not going back to school until Wednesday at the earliest. It's not your fault that you're sick and this is what parents do. We don't mind taking care of you."

"I just...It's...well...it's just my parent's, my real parents, they used to get really mad when I got sick. They never stayed home with me and they nearly never left me stay home from school. I just...I'm not used to all this."

"Oh Tony, I'm sorry that your parents were like that, but we really do care about you and we don't mind taking care of you. It's all part of being a parent and we knew that things like this could happen before we decided to keep you and Abby. It's all part of the job. Now eat your breakfast while I go and wake Abby. She does have school today and isn't up yet."

Tony smiled and started eating his breakfast. He was feeling a bit tired still so decided going back to bed was a good idea. He just finished his bowl when Gibbs and Jenny came down the stairs with Abby coming sleepily behind them.

"Morning Abby." Tony called when he saw her. "Morning Gibbs."

"Good morning Tony, how are you feeling this morning?" Gibbs replied and Abby mumbled something which they took to be a greeting of some sort.

"A bit better." Tony replied. "Still tired"

"Well you're still very pale so take it easy today and get some rest. I'll be at work, but Jen will be here with you."

"I will." Tony assured with a little smile. "I'm going back to bed now. I'll um see you later."

"Call if you need anything." Jenny called as Tony headed up the stairs.

Tony slept for a few hours before he woke again. He went down stairs and found Jenny in her home office. She suggested that Tony curl up on the couch and watched some TV, so he did. Jenny was busy talking to their lawyers about adopting another child. She had a few forms to fill out and a few people to talk to before they could even think about adopting another child. Tony was happy in front of the TV. His parents had never let him watch TV so he was engrossed in all of the old shows. Jenny made him some lunch and he ate it all to her delight. He also drank the water that she kept giving him. He dozed off a few times but didn't sleep as much as he had been. When Abby came home she sat with Tony and did her homework, occasionally getting some help from Tony.

They had dinner when Gibbs came home and Tony spent the entire time talking about the shows he had watched all day. They all listened intently as he talked and were all delighted he seemed better. He was still sneezing and coughing occasionally but didn't look as pale. After dinner Tony and Abby watched a film while Gibbs and Jenny talked about what Jenny had been doing all day.

* * *

A/N: Thank you so much for all of the Favorites and Alerts and a big thanks to everyone who has taken the time to review. It means a lot.


	5. Chapter 5

When Tony woke the following morning he happily got out of bed and as usual Abby still wasn't up. She wasn't a morning person and it took her ages to get out of bed. Tony was ready and waiting by the time she stumbled down the stairs. It was raining outside so they were getting a ride to school with Gibbs and Jenny. When Abby was finally ready the family left the house and first dropped Abby off at school and then Tony.

Later that evening, after they had dinner, Jenny and Gibbs sat down with the two children to discuss another child being added to the family.

"When we were at the party on Saturday, Jessica told us about Sarah's brother who was still in a group home." Jenny said watching them both carefully to see if there was any reaction. "Sarah is very sad that her brother isn't with her anymore. Jess and Chris don't have room for any more children, but we do."

"We were thinking that it would be nice if we could have him live with us." Gibbs continued. "What would you think about that?"

"What age is he?" Abby asked worriedly. She didn't really want to have a baby running around the house. She never wanted a baby brother or sister like some of her friends had.

"He's nine." Gibbs replied "He's just a month older than you Abby. He'll be in the same grade as you."

"Well I suppose it'll be alright then." Abby said with a nod "Have you met him?"

"No we are going to meet him tomorrow." Jenny said. "We want to make sure that the both of you are ok with this before we meet him."

"How did his parents die?" Abby asked curiously.

"His dad was in the Marines and died while he was protecting our country." Gibbs explained sadly. "A few months later his Mom died of something called a brain haemorrhage."

"And he doesn't have anyone else." Abby asked

"No he doesn't." Jenny replied sadly. "He only has Sarah and they can't be together because Sarah is being adopted."

"Ok then." Abby replied "Will we get to meet him too?"

"No, you'll have to wait until we bring him home." Gibbs said. "Tony you've been very quiet. Are you ok with this?"

"It's fine; you can do what you want." Tony said grumpily. "Can I go to bed I'm kinda tired."

"Sure Tony." Jenny replied with a soft smile. "Sleep well and we'll see you tomorrow."

"Night." Tony mumbled as he hurried up the stairs. He really was feeling tired but he was worried about having another boy in the house. He wondered why they needed another boy, was he not good enough or were Gibbs and Jenny sick of him already. These thoughts were swimming through his head as he got ready for bed. He lay down with a sigh and closed his eyes. He really had thought things would be different now, but he was afraid that this new kid was going to replace him. Were they getting a new kid because he had been sick that they wanted someone who didn't get sick? A tear slid down his face as he fell asleep.

"I don't think Tony is too happy about this." Abby said to her parents when she was sure Tony was in bed.

"Maybe you could talk to him about it." Jenny asked "See what's bothering him."

"Sure." Abby replied as they settled down to watch some TV.

Over the next few days Tony was very quiet. He was still tired because of the cold but it was more than that, he was still concerned about their new addition. Abby tried to ask him how he felt about it but he just told her that he didn't mind. While they all knew that this wasn't the case, they had to proceed. Gibbs and Jenny went to meet with Tim and they instantly fell in love with him. He was a very bright and intelligent child, but came across very shy, which wasn't surprising considering all that had happened. Because of the connections that both Jenny and Gibbs had, they were able to push things forward very quickly and Tim would be moving in with them that Saturday.

When Saturday arrived there was a lot of activity in the house. Gibbs was getting the bedroom ready for Tim while Abby and Tony were tidying up their toys. Jenny was gone to collect Tim and later that day Chris and Jess were going to be coming over with Sarah. The weather was lovely out so they were going to have a barbeque for everyone. Tony was even quieter that day than he had been all week and Gibbs was getting worried. The only response anyone had gotten out of Tony all morning was a nod or shake of his head or a shrug of his shoulders.

It was finally time for Tim to arrive so Gibbs, Tony and Abby were waiting in the living room. They heard the car pulling into the drive way and they all stood up.

"Be nice to Tim." Gibbs said. "He's going to be nervous with all the new faces and we want to make him welcome."

"Of course we'll be nice." Abby scoffed as she bounced on the spot. "We are always nice."

Tony just nodded his head.

The door opened and Jenny entered followed by a shy looking boy with light brown hair and blue eyes. Tim looked at the others with fear in his eyes. These were all new people and he didn't know them.

"Hi Timmy." Abby greeted and pulled the frightened boy into a hug. "I'm Abby and this is Tony and we're glad you're here."

"Uh hi." Tim squeaked nervously, looking at Tony.

Tony gave a small smile and a wave before sitting back down on the couch.

"Do ya wanna see your room?" Abby asked almost bouncing on the spot in excitement.

"Um ok." Tim replied as Abby hurried up the stairs.

Tim followed her up the stairs and Jenny followed him, carrying his bags. Gibbs remained in the sitting room with Tony to try and talk to him.

"Are you ok Tony?" Gibbs asked as he sat down on the couch.

Tony nodded in response but refused to meet Gibbs' eyes.

"You know, you can talk to me if you're worried about something." Gibbs said softly "I know this is a big change, but it's not going to change anything. We still love you and Abby just as much."

Tony nodded again but didn't say anything, which was starting to annoy Gibbs.

"I don't know if you are sulking or sad or what, but you need to show Tim that he is welcome here. Think how you felt when you first came here." Gibbs said as he stood up from the couch. "I'm going upstairs; you can follow me if you want to."

Tony nodded again and watched sadly as Gibbs walked up the stairs. He lay down on the couch and closed his eyes, wanting to rest for just a few minutes. This is where the others found him when they came back down stairs a few minutes later.

"Is that little boy sick?" Tim asked curiously when he saw Tony asleep.

"Honey, Tony is older than you." Jenny said as she looked worriedly at Tony. "And I think he's just a bit tired. Now how about you go outside with Abby and she can show you around the garden."

"Ok." Tim agreed and he and Abby ran outside while Gibbs and Jenny moved to the kitchen.

"Do you think he's still sick?" Jenny asked worriedly "He has still been tired over the past few days."

"I don't know Jen, I think he's just sulking because of Tim" Gibbs sighed. "He's been fine the past few days."

"Except that he's barley been talking and has been going to bed early."

"I see your point." Gibbs relented with a sigh. "Maybe the cold is still in his system."

"Let him sleep for a while." Jenny said as she started preparing the food for later. "Maybe he will be more talkative when he wakes."

Gibbs grunted in reply and went outside to watch the other two kids playing while he started the grill.

Two hours later the food was nearly ready and guests would be arriving soon. Tony was still asleep on the couch so Jenny had to wake him up

"Tony, come on kiddo, time to wake up." She called as she sat down beside him.

Tony opened his blurry eyes and looked up at Jenny with a confused expression on his face.

"You fell asleep on the couch." Jenny explained softly. "Chris and Jess will be here in a few minutes with the girls. Everyone else is out in the garden if you want to join them."

Tony stretched his arms and nodded his head before getting up. He headed out to the garden where he saw Abby and Tim on the swing set. Tony smiled at them both before climbing onto the climbing frame and making himself comfortable near the top. Although he was small, he was strong and could climb to the top very quickly and this seemed to be a favourite place of his.

A few minutes later the back door opened and Chris and Jess came into the back yard. Chris had Sarah in his arms and the other two girls were following behind.

"Hey kids, come over here." Gibbs called and Abby and Tim cam running over. Tony was climbing down the frame when he heard a squeal of delight coming from Sarah. He looked up to watch them as he continued climbing down. He smiled when he saw the look of happiness on Sarah's face. He was so busy watching them that he missed a step and fell. He landed on his feet but lost his balance and fell back. He wacked his head against the bar behind him, dazing him slightly.

"Where the hell is Tony?" Gibbs growled as he looked around. He saw Tony slowly walking towards them. "Hurry up Tony."

Tony glanced up and saw the anger in Gibbs eyes. He hurried up to the rest of them and stayed as far away from Gibbs as he could.

"Hey Tony, how are you feeling." Chris asked when he saw Tony with them.

"M'k" Tony mumbled as he tried not to rub his sore head.

"That's good." Chris replied with a smile. "Are you excited to have a new brother?"

Tony shrugged his shoulders as he watched Tim hugging Sarah for the tenth time.

"Let's have some food." Jenny suggested as she led the way to the table.

Tony chose a seat at the far end from where Gibbs was sitting, which was very unusual. Tony always sat beside Gibbs but Tony was afraid to sit near the man because he yelled at him so much that day. Everyone else took seats around the table with Tim and Sarah sitting together.

Everyone quickly dug into their food and started eating. There was a large variety of meats and salads so everyone was happy. They had been eating for a while when Chris noticed that Tony wasn't eating much and what he did eat, he seemed to have trouble swallowing.

"Hey Tony." Chris said after a few minutes of observing the child. "Is your throat sore, buddy."

Tony looked up in surprise and fear. He had been trying to hide that he wasn't feeling well. He really liked it here and he didn't want to be sent away because he was sick again. He shook his head no and looked away from Chris.

"Is that why you haven't been talking." Jenny asked softly when she heard what Chris had asked.

Tony closed his eyes tight for a few seconds before looking at Jenny. He saw concern in her eyes so decided to tell her.

"Yeah." He croaked. "It hurts."

"Oh Tony." Jenny sighed "Why didn't you tell us, we could have given you something to help."

"Can I have a look in your mouth Tony?" Chris asked.

"No needles." Tony croaked thinking of the last time he let Chris near him.

"No Needles Tony." Chris promised and Tony reluctantly opened his mouth.

Chris gently tipped Tony's head back and looked into his mouth. He put one hand on Tony's chin and the other he put on the back of his head.

Tony flinched in pain when Chris touched the spot where he had banged.

"You have a bump on your head, how did that happen." Chris asked as he moved his hand away.

"I fell." Tony croaked after he closed his mouth.

"When did you fall?" Jenny asked worriedly.

"Few minutes ago." Tony whispered

"Should I call Ducky?" Gibbs asked and Tony flinched when he heard his voice.

"I think that might be a good idea." Chris replied. "I think Tony is going to need antibiotics, it looks to me like a throat infection."

"I'll call him." Gibbs sighed and went into the house. He returned a few minutes later carrying a carton of yogurt.

"Ducky said you should eat something and yogurt will be easy to swallow." Gibbs explained as he placed the tub in front of Tony.

"Thanks." Tony said quietly and took a spoonful of the cold soft food. It actually felt good as he swallowed it. He quickly ate the remains of the tub and then put the empty tub down on the table.

"Ducky will be here in a few minutes." Gibbs said to Jenny quietly. "Why didn't he tell us he was sick?"

"I don't know Jethro, but I think we need to talk to him later."

Ducky arrived nearly half an hour later with his bag in hand. "Where's my young patient?" He asked

"He's here." Chris called. "I think it could be a throat infection."

"Let me have a look my boy." Ducky said as he took a seat in front of Tony. "Now open wide."

Tony opened his mouth and peered in with his light. After that he gently ran his fingers over Tony's neck. He then took Tony's temperature and blood pressure.

"Well my boy, I think it's just a bit of an infection in your throat. It's most likely just an after effect of the cold." Ducky explained to everyone. "I'm going to write a prescription for some antibiotics for him. Jethro, you should collect it straight away, attack this infection as quick as we can."

"Sure Duck." Gibbs agreed. "Is it for pills or medicine?"

"I'm afraid it's going to have to be pills. I don't think they have anything in liquid form that'll be strong enough to battle this infection. I'm afraid it may be a bit uncomfortable to swallow them Tony, but it's the only thing we can do."

Tony gave a small smile and nodded.

"Now I would also suggest plenty of soft, cold foods, Ice cream and Jelly or Jello, as you Americans call it. Plenty of yogurt and of course plenty of water. Rest as much as you need to. I'm sure you are tired. You should be feeling better in a day or too."

"Thanks," Tony croaked.

"Actually now that I'm here, I would very much like the chance to talk to you all about something." Ducky said looking at the adults.

"Why don't you go play for a while?" Jenny suggested to the kids.

They all got up and ran towards the swings with the exception of Tony who followed at a slower pace.

"What do you want to talk about Duck?" Gibbs asked.

"Well I have registered as a foster parent in the hopes of fostering and eventually adopting a child." Ducky explained.

"That's wonderful Ducky." Jenny said happily. "What brought this on?"

"Well I have seen how happy you've been since you've adopted both Abigail and Anthony and now Timothy of course. I don't think at this stage of my life I am likely to be having any children of my own. I have a large house and a lot of love to share, why not share it with a child who has nothing."

"That's great Duck." Gibbs said. "Have you heard anything about when it will go ahead?"

"Well actually that's what I wanted to tell you. A dear friend of mine passed away this past week and has left behind an eight year old son. I am hoping to take him in, but of course there are a lot of interviews to go through before I can bring him home. I was hoping I could put you down as references."

"Of course Ducky." Jenny said.

"We would be very happy to Ducky." Jessica added. "I hope everything goes through all right and if there is anything we can do just let us know."

"Thank you, I appreciate it." Ducky said. "Now I must get going, I have a lot to do. Make sure Tony doesn't over do it and get those antibiotics into him quickly. He should be alright for school on Monday. I will see you all soon"

"Thanks for everything Duck." Gibbs said and walked Ducky out.

Gibbs made a quick trip to the nearest drug store and filled the prescription. When he returned home Jenny and Jess were cleaning up while Chris was playing with the kids.

Gibbs watched Chris playing and noticed that Tony wasn't playing with them; he was sitting on a swing by himself.

"You ok Tony." He asked as he watched the boy.

"Yeah." Tony croaked.

"How come you aren't playing with the others?"

"I don't feel so good." Tony admitted as Gibbs sat down on the other swing.

"Do you want to come inside with me?" Gibbs asked softly

"No please, I'm sorry, I'll be good. I didn't mean to be bad." Tony cried as he stopped the swing "Please don't punish me."

"Why would I punish you?" Gibbs asked in shock.

"You told me to stop sulking and then you yelled at me. My father always punished me. I really am sorry."

"I'm not going to punish you." Gibbs assured kindly as Tony swung slightly. "I want you to come inside so you can rest."

"But you're still mad at me?"

"No Tony I'm not mad at you. In fact you should be mad at me. I yelled at you for no reason."

"I didn't come when you called." Tony replied nervously, that had always gotten him a beating from his father.

"You fell and hurt yourself. I should have realized that but I didn't, so it is my fault. And I thought you were sulking because of Tim coming to live with us. I didn't know you were sick. You should have told us you were feeling sick. Why didn't you?"

Tony stopped swinging and took a deep breath. "I thought that maybe, well um, that you got Tim cos, cos, you didn't want me any more cos I got sick."

"Oh Tony." Gibbs sighed and knelt in front of Tony, taking his hands in his own. "It doesn't matter if you were sick every single day, we would still want you. We love you very much Tony and Tim is not here to replace you. You're irreplaceable."

"Promise?" Tony asked as tears filled his eyes.

"I Promise Tony." Gibbs said and Tony flung himself into Gibbs arms.

Gibbs hugged the crying child and stood up with Tony still in his arms. The others were now watching Tony so Gibbs brought him inside. He sat down on the couch with Tony still in his arms, still sobbing.

"Have you been thinking about this all week?" Gibbs asked as he gently rubbed Tonys back. "No wonder you've been so quiet."

"I'm sorry." Tony whimpered.

"There's nothing to be sorry for Tony." Gibbs assured again. "But in future if there is anything bothering you, please tell us. We won't punish you for talking to us. We were worried about you."

"What if I've done something bad?" Tony asked worriedly.

"Depending what it is, you might be punished." Gibbs explained but felt Tony stiffen up. "We don't hit in this house as punishment Tony. You might be grounded or not be allowed to watch TV but I promise we will never ever hit you."

"OK." Tony whispered and again buried his head in Gibbs shoulder.

"Is everything OK." Jenny asked a few minutes later when she came into the room

"Everything is fine." Gibbs assured with a smile. "Tony is just a bit tired so we are going to stay here for a while"

"We'll be outside if you need us." Jenny replied and left them alone again.

"Can we go back outside now?" Tony asked after a few minutes.

"Sure." Gibbs replied and stood up with Tony still in his arms.

"You can put me down, if you want." Tony croaked as Gibbs started walking.

"Do you want to go down?" Gibbs asked as they walked through the house

Tony shook his head no and put his head back down on Gibbs shoulder.

"Then no, I'm not going to put you down." Gibbs said as they made their way into the back garden.

"Hey guys." Jess called. "We were just about to have some ice cream. Would you like some?"

"Yes please." Tony replied with a shy smile.

"That'd be great Jess." Gibbs added as he ruffled Tony's hair.

Jenny called Chris and the other kids and they all came running. Jessica dished out some ice cream for everyone with and extra scoop for Tony. Everyone enjoyed the frozen treat, especially Tony. When they were done Jenny got Tony's antibiotics and handed one to Tony with a glass of water. Tony took the pill and swallowed it with a wince.

"It's getting late." Chris said. "We should get going."

"Yeah." Jess agreed. "We have a busy day tomorrow, as do you guys."

"Why what are we doing tomorrow?" Melissa asked excitedly.

"We are going to visit your grandparents." Chris replied with a grin. "We have to introduce Sarah to them."

"What are we doing tomorrow?" Abby asked curiously

"Grandpa Jack is coming to visit." Gibbs replied. "He's going to be staying for a few days."

"That's great; I can't wait to see him again." Abby replied happily,

"He's looking forward to meeting Tony and Tim." Gibbs replied with a smile. "He has someone to cover the shop for a few days so thought it would be a good time to come."

"I can't wait." Abby squealed. "Grandpa Jack is really nice and fun and he tells stories and stuff."

"Well we'll see you during the week." Chris said as he stood up with a sleepy Sarah in his arms. "Tim, we'll bring Sarah over to visit next week and you can come over to our house to visit her."

"Thanks." Tim replied with a smile. "I'm glad she's going to be so near, I really missed her."

"She missed you too." Jess assured. "Come on girls, say goodbye."

"Bye." Called Melisa and Caroline as they all started leaving.

"Bye." Tim and Abby called

"See ya." Tony croaked

"Let's get you up to bed." Gibbs said to Tony who was yawning.

Tony nodded and slowly made his way upstairs. He slowly brushed his teeth and changed into his pyjamas, before climbing into bed.

Gibbs and Jenny came into the room and gently tucked Tony in.

"Good night Tony." Gibbs said as he ruffled the child's hair. "Call us if you need us or if you aren't feeling well."

"Good Night Tony." Jenny added and gave Tony a kiss on the head.

Tony smiled and nodded before curling up under the blankets. Jenny and Gibbs went down stairs to get the other two ready for bed.

"Is Tony really older than me?" They heard Tim asking Abby. "I mean he's way smaller than me and Jethro was carrying him around."

"Yeah he is and he's two grades ahead of us cos he's really smart." Abby replied "And Gibbs was only carrying him because Tony is sick, he's been sick since last week."

"Yeah ok." Tim replied "So what's Grandpa Jack like?"

"He's really great." Abby replied. "He'll love having boys to play ball with and stuff."

"I don't really like playing sports." Tim admitted with a frown.

"That's ok he won't mind." Abby assured.

"Time for bed." Gibbs interrupted them as he walked into the room.

The pair quickly got up and ran upstairs to get ready. They were each in bed within a few minutes and asleep a few minutes later.

Jenny and Gibbs sat down on the couch with a sigh.

"Did you find out what was bothering Tony." Jenny asked worriedly. She had wanted to ask for sometime but had to wait.

"He was afraid that we took Tim in because we wanted a boy who wasn't sick." Jethro sighed as he hugged his wife. "He didn't want to tell us he was sick for the same reason. When I brought him inside he thought I was going to hit him because I yelled at him earlier. He was terrified Jen. If his father wasn't already dead I'd kill him myself."

"Poor thing." Jenny sighed, thinking about what it must have been like for Tony. "We need to make sure he knows that we love him and that we would never hit him."

"I've told him already but I think we'll have to keep saying it until it sinks in."

"Come on let's get the room ready for your father."

* * *

A/N sorry for the long delay in getting this up.

Thank you to everyone who has reviewed and Favorited the story. I appreciated it.


	6. Chapter 6

The following morning Gibbs got up early to collect Jackson from the airport. He wasn't waiting long until he saw his father coming out of the terminal.

"Dad." Gibbs greeted as he pulled his father into a quick embrace.

"Leroy, it's good to see you." Jack said "How are Jenny and the kids."

"They're good and looking forward to meeting you. Tony has a bit of a sore throat so is a bit out of sorts but other than that all is good."

"Let's get going, I can't wait to meet them."

The pair made it back to the house in record time and they entered the house to the delicious aroma of pancakes and bacon.

"Wow, I should come to visit more often." Jack said as he entered the kitchen, "Hello Jenny, It's good to see you."

"You too Jack." Jenny replied as she gave the man a hug and kiss.

"Grandpa Jack." Abby squealed as she ran into the kitchen and threw herself at Jack. "I'm so glad you are here,"

"Me too cupcake." Jack replied and picked her up. "My, you are getting very big. I won't be able to pick you for much longer."

"Well I am nearly ten now." Abby said as he put her down.

"That you are. Where are your new brothers?"

"Tim, come on." Abby called "Grandpa wants to meet you."

"Um Hi." Tim said shyly as he came through the door.

"We'll hello there Tim. I'm your Grandpa Jack. You can call me grandpa or Jack or whatever you feel comfortable with."

"Ok." Tim agreed. "I've never had a grandpa before."

"Well then I'm glad I get to be your grandpa." Jack said as he ruffled Tim hair. "And where's Tony."

"I think he's still asleep." Jenny replied. "I called him a while ago but he hasn't gotten up yet."

"I'll go up and get him" Jethro said and left the room.

He returned a few minutes later carrying a very tired Tony who was still in his pajamas.

"Tony, this is my dad, your Grandpa Jack." Gibbs said as he adjusted Tony in his arms.

"Hi." Tony mumbled as he lay his head back down on Gibbs shoulder.

"Hi Tony, I hear you are not feeling too well." Jack said as he moved directly in front of Tony.

"Um my throat hurts." Tony confirmed "But I'll be better soon."

"That's good to hear." Jack replied with a smile "I hear you are a great little football player and I can't wait to play so ball with you.

"Really?" Tony asked in surprise. "Who told you that?"

"Leroy has told me all about you." Jack replied. "Now I don't know about you but I'm starving and I can't wait to have some breakfast."

"Yeah I'm starving." Abby said as she and Tim took their seats.

Gibbs put Tony down and the rest of the family took their seats and started eating.

"Tony do you think you can eat some pancakes or would you like yogurt or oatmeal." Jenny asked when she saw Tony picking at a pancake.

"Can I have a yogurt please?" Tony asked

Jenny went to the fridge and took out two yogurts and gave them to Tony.

"Thanks." Tony said and quickly started eating the cold food.

He was finished before the others, so excused himself to get dressed for the day. When he came back downstairs he helped with the dishes before going out into the back garden with Abby and Tim.

They played for nearly half an hour before they were called in. Jenny had prepared a picnic and they were going to the park. Gibbs packed a football and baseball and bat so that they could play. He also packed a Frisbee and a few other things for them to play with. They all piled into the car and drove to a nearby park which had a large play area and plenty of space for playing.

When they arrived Jenny and Abby laid out a large blanket and they all sat down.

"Anybody want to play some ball." Gibbs asked as he tossed the ball into the air and caught it again.

"Me, I want to play." Tony called as he jumped up.

"Me too." Jack said as he got to his feet a bit more slowly. "Anyone else?"

"Um no I don't really like sports." Tim said.

"Me neither." Abby added. "Me and Timmy will stay here."

Jack, Jethro and Tony moved a bit away from the picnic area and started throwing the ball to each other.

"Go long Tony." Gibbs called and Tony started running. Gibbs threw the ball and Tony caught it with ease.

"Toss it here." Jack called and Tony threw the ball with all his strength. It sailed through the air and straight in Jacks waiting arms. "Wow that's a good arm Tony."

The boys spent the next half an hour throw the ball with Tony doing all of the running around. When they were finished playing Tony collapsed on the blanket thoroughly exhausted.

"Are you ok Tony?" Jenny asked worriedly.

"Yeah." Tony replied with a grin. "That was fun, but I'm tired now."

"How is your throat feeling?" Jenny asked as she felt his forehead.

"It's scratchy." Tony admitted "But it's better than yesterday. The tablets you gave me this morning made it a bit better I think."

"That's good." Jenny replied in relief. "How about we have some food and then you can relax for a while. You haven't eaten much the past few days so you need something filling in your tummy."

"I am hungry." Tony admitted "But it hurts when I swallow."

"Well only eat what you can manage." Jenny said as she started putting out the food. "I've packed yogurts for you and there's potato salad and a few other things you should be able to manage."

"Thanks." Tony replied as he and the others started taking some food.

"With all this great food I'm getting, you're going to have a hard time getting rid of me." Jack said as he finished off a sandwich. "It's much better than anything I can do myself."

"You are always welcome with us Jack." Jenny said. "We love having you."

"Thanks Jenny."

"We do love having you here Dad." Jethro added. "We wish you could come more often."  
"We I am hoping to be able to take more time off from the shop." Jack replied "One of the Anderson girls from down the road has been working for me lately. She lost her job and needs the money. She's good and reliable so I am hoping to hand over more responsibilities to her."

"You are always welcome here Dad." Gibbs added again to make sure he got the point across.

"Thanks." Jack replied as he finished his food. "Now who wants to play some Frisbee with me?"

"Oh me, me, I do." Abby squealed as she bounced up and down where she was sitting. "Timmy, will you play."

"Yeah, ok." Tim replied "I actually like Frisbee and I'm not that bad at it."

"Cool come on." Abby said and pulled Tim up. "Tony, are you coming to play."

"Um I don't know." Tony replied tiredly. "I'm kinda tired."

"Aw come on Tony." Abby pouted.

"Tony is still sick Abs." Jenny said as she checked Tony over. "He needs to take it easy and he's already been playing ball. Maybe later he can play again."

"Ok." Abby sighed. "Come on grandpa, come on Tim, let's play."

The two kids hurried down to an open area with Jack following behind. The three of them started throwing the Frisbee around while the other three watched from the blanket. Tony really was feeling tired and as he watched the others playing he started nodding off. Jethro saw this and quietly moved so that Tony was leaning against him.

Jenny smiled at the pair delighted to see such a difference from when Tony had first joined them. He had been very quiet and shied away from all touch, especially from men. Now he was much more at ease with them and although he still didn't like being touched by anyone he didn't know, he had come a long way.

Tony was fast asleep by the time Abby and Tim came running back to the blanket. They were messing with each other, shoving and nudging each other, having a laugh. They were just coming up to the blanket when Abby shoved Tim a little too hard. Tim fell forward and knocked into the sleeping Tony.

"Argh." Tony yelped and scooted as far away from Jethro and Tim as he could.

Jenny quickly went over to Tony while Gibbs checked on Tim

"It's ok Tony." Jenny assured the child who was shaking in fear. "Shhh honey its ok. Tim just fell and hit off you. No one is trying to hurt you."

Tony looked up at Jenny and looked worriedly around at everyone. He saw Tim sitting on the blanket with a scraped knee and Gibbs was cleaning it. Abby was standing watching them all with tears in her eyes and Jack was comforting her.

"I...I...I'm sorry." Tony said in a shaky voice. He was still shaking and he was short of breath.

"Hey Tony it's alright," Jenny comforted as she gently placed her hand on Tony's back.

Tony flinched when he felt the contact but remained where he was. He knew that Jenny wasn't going to hurt him but he was still frightened.

"Hey Tony are you ok." Gibbs asked as he moved beside Tony. "Are you hurt anywhere?"

"Um I...I Don't think so." Tony stuttered as he rubbed his leg.

"Is your leg sore?" Jack asked as he knelt down beside them.

"Maybe a little bit." Tony admitted "its fine, just a bang."

"I'm sorry Tony." Tim said as he moved beside them "It was an accident; I didn't mean to hurt you."

"I'm sorry Too Tony." Abby added "I pushed Timmy so it's my fault he fell."

"It's ok, I...I just got a fright." Tony assured. "I'm ok really."

"We really are sorry Tony." Tim added.

Tony gave a slight smile and nodded

"How about we pack up and head home." Gibbs suggested "We need to get dinner started."

Everyone nodded in agreement and they packed up their things before returning to the car. The trip home was quiet and they were all happy to get out of the car. Jenny and Gibbs quickly started the dinner as soon as they got in while the kids went out to play and Jack set the table. An hour later dinner was ready and Jack went out to call the kids. He found Abby and Tim running around the garden. He saw Tony sitting on one of the swings watching the others play.

"Come on kids, dinner is ready."

The three kids hurried into the house just as Jenny put the food on the table. Abby and Tim chatted throughout the dinner but Tony remained quiet. He was still a bit frightened after today but was also tired and his throat was sore again.

"Do you think you'll be ok for school tomorrow Tony." Jenny asked when they had finished their meal. "You look a bit tired."

"I'll be ok." Tony assured with a small smile. "I just need some sleep."

"Ok kiddo." Gibbs said "but let us know if you feel sick tomorrow."

"I will." Tony assured. "Would it be ok if I go to bed now?"

"Of course Tony." Jenny replied with a smile. "You go get ready and I'll be up to tuck you in."

Tony nodded in agreement and got up from the table. He slowly climbed the stairs and got changed into his pyjamas. He had just finished brushing his teeth when Jenny came up the stairs.

"Here take these they will help your throat." She said and handed him some pills.

"Thanks." Tony replied and swallowed the pills.

"Into bed now." Jenny said and Tony climbed under his covers. "Good night Tony and sleep well." She added as she tucked him in and kissed his forehead. "We love you."

Tony smile uncertainly and closed his eyes. Jenny smiled sadly at him and then left the boy to sleep.

When she returned downstairs the others were all sitting in the living room. She joined them and sat in an armchair with a sigh.

"How is he?" Jack asked worriedly.

"He's fine, just tired." Jenny assured.

"I really didn't mean to hurt him." Tim said sadly. "It was an accident."

"We know it was Tim." Gibbs assured "We're not mad with you. I don't think that you hurt him that much, I think he just got a fright."

"Why would that frighten him?" Tim asked confused.

Gibbs looked at Jenny and she nodded so Gibbs decided to tell Tim why Tony would have been frightened.

"Tony's Dad wasn't nice to him." Abby said before Gibbs could say anything.

"Oh did he hit him?" Tim asked in shock. "Why would he do that?"

"Yeah he used to hit him." Gibbs replied "We don't know why but I think that sometimes if someone shouts at him or touches him, he gets a fright."

"It's just something we need to be careful of." Jenny said. "It's not something he has spoken about at all and we don't want to push him."

"Ok." Tim agreed nodding. He thought that his life had been tough but now he realized that it wasn't that bad. He knew that both of his parents had loved him although he didn't see his father much. He was glad that Tony had a nice family now.

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A/N: I am so sorry for the delay in posting a new chapter, I've had a few assignments to get done and just haven't had time. Thank you all for your reviews and favorites, i really appreciate them.


	7. Chapter 7

Jackson had to catch a flight home the following morning, so everyone was up early and went to the airport to say goodbye. When Jackson had gone through security Jenny and Jethro dropped the kids off at school for their last week before the summer holidays.

The week passed very quickly and Tony was feeling much better. Finally the last day of school came and the three kids ran home from school and were met by Jenny and Jethro.

"Ok guys, now that school is over for the summer we need to talk about summer camps." Jenny said as they all sat around the table. "Abby what would you like to do."

"Um I'd kinda like to go to a science camp." Abby replied awkwardly "I'm not really sure what else I'd like."

"Ok, Tim, what about you." Jenny asked turning to their newest addition.

"I'd like to go to computer camp." Tim replied with a smile. "I really like computers and I like science too, so that would be nice.

"We'll see what we can do." Gibbs said and turned to Tony. "Tony what would you like to do?

"Um can I pick anything?" Tony asked worriedly.

"Yes of course honey."

"I'd really like to go to football camp or basketball camp or baseball camp." Tony replied "But I can go to science or whatever.

"You can go to any camp you want Tony." Gibbs assured. "It doesn't have to be school related. Have any of you ever gone to camp before.

"Yeah I was at one last year." Abby replied "It was an art camp, we didn't stay over or anything, it was just on during the day and we came home at night."

"Yeah me too." Tim added "I went to computer camp but I didn't sleep there."

"How about you Tony?" Jenny asked.

"I've been to summer camp lots of times and I've always stayed over. I've never been to one where you get to come home."

"Well this summer you are all going to be going to two different camps." Jenny explained "One will be for two weeks and you will be staying over and the other will be for one week and you will be coming home every evening."

"What about the rest of the summer?" Tony asked curiously, he normally spent all summer at a few different camps.

"Well, we were thinking that you could all go to visit Grandpa Jack for a week or two and then we will go on a family holiday." Jenny said "Either Jethro or I will be working from home any of the other days that you are here. "

"That's sounds great," Abby replied excitedly." My parents were never able to stay home with me during the summer, I normally had a babysitter."

"Yeah me too." Tim agreed "What about you Tony"

"I spent all of my summer at camps. "Tony replied quietly "Sometimes I'd get to go on holiday with my father, but not much."

"What kind of summer camps were they that you went to Tony?" Gibbs asked

"Um they were for all kinds of things. One I went to taught us how to throw a knife and how to shoot a bow and arrow, all those kinds of things. That was cool, I liked that. I went to a science one last year and we did some cool experiments but it was mostly plants and nature stuff. But most of them were more like summer school than camp and we done all sorts of lessons. I didn't like those camps."

"Yeah who wants more school when you are on holidays?" Abby said. "So where are we going on the family holiday?"

"We are going to go to a cabin that's on a beach." Jenny replied. "I used to go there when I was little. We can go horse riding and swimming. There are lots of things we can do."

"I really want to go horse riding" Abby exclaimed "I've never been on a horse but it looks like fun."

"I love horse riding." Jenny replied "and so does Jethro so we can teach you all."

"Cool."

Jenny and Jethro looked at the camps that were available and signed each of the kids up to something that they would enjoy. Abby and Tim were signed up for the same camp for a two week stay. It specialised in both Computer and science which made both of them happy. Tony was signed up for a two week sports camp where they played all types of sports so he was ecstatic. Tim and Abby would be leaving that Saturday and Tony would be leaving on the Sunday.

They were all signed up for the same week long camp in August. It was taking place in the nearby youth and sports centre. They did a lot of different things there to keep them all happy.

When Saturday morning arrived Abby and McGee were very excited and a little bit nervous. They were standing outside with their bags waiting for the bus. They were half an hour too early but they didn't want to miss it. Jenny, Gibbs and Tony were waiting with them. When the bus finally arrived they were both full of energy and bouncing around. Gibbs put their bags into the luggage compartment while the two kids hugged Jenny. Abby ran over and gave Tony a big hug while Tim just smiled at him. They gave Gibbs a hug before they raced onto the bus and took their seats. As the bus took off they waved out the window until they could no longer be seen.

"Ok Tony, it's just the three of us for the day, is there anything you would like to do." Jenny asked as they walked back into the house.

"Um could we, I mean if it's ok, could we maybe go to the movies." Tony asked hesitantly.

"I think that's a great idea Tony." Jenny said. "I love going to the movies and I haven't been in ages."

"Really we can go?" Tony asked in surprise "I've always wanted to go."

"You've never been to the movies?" Gibbs asked in surprise

"No my father wouldn't allow me to." Tony sighed sadly.

"Well let's see what's on." Jenny said as she grabbed the newspaper and they all sat at the kitchen table.

Tony saw the advertisement for the new Shrek movie and hesitantly pointed to it.

"I know it's a kid's movie, but I can go on my own."

"We love Shrek Tony." Jenny assured. "It's not on for a while yet, how about we go to the park and then for lunch before we go."

"Yeah that sounds brilliant." Tony grinned happily.

Tony had the best day of his life that day. They went to the park where the three of them played football and went on the swings. They went for pizza for lunch and then went to the movies, where Tony got popcorn candy and soda. He also got to sit between Jenny and Gibbs. It was the most attention he had ever had in one day and he was happy.

When they got home there was a message on the machine from Ducky asking them to come over for dinner. They all agreed that it would be a nice way to spend the evening.

They relaxed for a little while before getting ready and then walked the short distance to Ducky's

"Hey Duck." Gibbs called as they entered the large house.

"Hello Jethro." Ducky called. "We are in the kitchen, join us."

Jenny, Jethro and Tony went into the kitchen where they found Ducky cooking at the stove while a young boy of about 8 was sitting at the table.

"I am so glad you could all come." Ducky said as he turned around. "I would like to introduce you to someone. This young lad here is Jimmy. Jimmy these are some of my very good friends Jenny and Jethro Gibbs and this is their soon to be son Tony."

"Um hi," Jimmy greeted shyly with a small wave.

"Why don't we all have a seat and I'll serve dinner." Ducky said with a smile. "Everything is just about ready,"

"Do you need a hand Duck?" Gibbs asked as Tony and Jenny took their seats.

"You could carry some of the food to the table for me."

Gibbs took some of the food and put it on the table while Ducky took the rest.

"What age are you Jimmy." Jenny asked as she filled a plate for Tony.

"I'm eight." Jimmy replied nervously. "I'm in 2nd grade; well I'm going into third grade."

"That's nice. Our other two kids Abby and Tim are just finished 3rd grade. They went to camp this morning but you'll get to meet them in a few weeks."

"Oh, is Tony too young for the camp, I was too young to go this year." Jimmy sighed sadly,

"No Tony is actually nearly 10." Jenny replied "He's going to his camp tomorrow."

"Oh when are you going to be 10?" Jimmy asked Tony

"In two and a half weeks." Tony replied

"Oh my goodness." Ducky exclaimed and jumped up from the table. "I almost forgot to give you your insulin Jimmy."

Ducky hurried over to fridge, grabbed something and knelt beside Jimmy.

Tony's eyes went wide when he saw a syringe in Ducky's hand.

"Stop, leave him alone." Tony shouted and jumped off his chair giving everyone a fright "He didn't do anything, leave him alone."

"Oh Anthony I am not hurting him or punishing him." Ducky said softly "Jimmy has something called diabetes and he has to have an injection a few times a day. If he didn't get it he would be very sick."

"Oh." Tony replied still looking suspiciously at Ducky. "Is that true Jimmy?"

"Yeah" Jimmy sighed. "I don't like them but if I don't get the shots I could get really, really sick."

"I'm sorry" Tony said as he sat back down" I um thought you were going to hurt him."

"It is very commendable that you would protect Jimmy." Ducky said as he injected the contents of the syringe into Jimmy thigh. "I am glad that you are watching out for him already."

Tony gave a slight smile and turned back to his food, embarrassed by his actions.

The rest of the dinner went by peacefully as the adults asked Jimmy questions trying to get to know him better. When dinner was finished Ducky suggested that Tony and Jimmy watch some TV, which the two children were delighted to do.

"Did your parents die too?" Jimmy asked Tony as they relaxed on the couch. "My mum died a few weeks ago, she had cancer."

"My Mum had cancer too" Tony replied "At least I think she did, she died when I was eight."

"What about your dad?" Jimmy asked" I don't have a dad, he left when I was little."

"My dad died a few months ago." Tony sighed. "The police tried to arrest him and he tried to get away and fell and died"

"Why was he being arrested" Jimmy asked eyes wide

"Um, cos he hurt me." Tony admitted. "That's how Jenny and Gibbs found me and why I'm with them now."

"They are adopting you like Ducky is adopting me."

"Yeah but its taking a really long time cos my dad had a lot of money and there's a will and stuff." Tony explained "I think the lawyers are fighting about it or me or something."

"Are the other two kids adopted?"

"Yeah Abby was there before me so she was adopted before I came and Tim is only there a few weeks but his adoption happened this week."

"I had to wait until they made sure I didn't have any other family who wanted me before they even let me go with Dr. Mallard."Jimmy explained. "Maybe it's something like that."

"Yeah it could be" Tony agreed "cos I think that whoever gets me gets my father's money. Maybe that's why Gibbs and Jenny wanted to keep me."

"Did they know your father had loads of money" Jimmy asked in shock.

"Um no I don't think so." Tony admitted. "So um when did you get here?"

"2 days ago. I was really nervous but Dr. Mallard seems nice. I'd only met him a few times before my mom died."

"Yeah he is nice, even though he's a doctor, I really don't like doctors." Tony said

"I want to be a doctor when I'm older, does that mean you won't like me." Jimmy asked worriedly

"Of course I'll like you, as long as you don't try to give me shots or anything." Tony grinned

"I won't." Jimmy agreed with a grin of his own." So what do you want to be when you grow up?"

"I don't know, I always wanted to play football but my father wouldn't let me, he wanted me to take over his business, I suppose I'll have to do that now."

"Couldn't you pay someone to do that for you and you could play football or be a fireman or a police officer or whatever you wanted."

Yeah maybe I could. That'd be cool. I could do whatever I wanted. So um why do you want to be a doctor?"

"Um, well I suppose cos I spent a lot of time in the hospital cos I was sick and then my mom spent a lot of time there and the doctors were really nice and they helped me a lot, so I want to help people."

"I'd like to help people too but I don't think I could be a doctor." Tony added "I've had doctors who were mean and scary so I don't want to be like them."

"What about a policeman, they help people." Jimmy suggested

"Yeah they do and the police that I meet were really nice and got me away from my father. Maybe I could do that and help other kids like me."

"How are you two getting on?" Ducky asked as he, Jenny and Gibbs came into the room.

"We're fine." Tony replied with a smile. "I'm sorry about earlier Ducky; I know you wouldn't hurt anyone, but I just, I just get scared of needles."

"Don't fret about it my boy, I understand."

"Jimmy was just telling me that he wants to be a doctor when he grows up." Tony added changing the subject. "I think he'd be a nice doctor, like you."

"Well thank you Tony, I think Jimmy would make an excellent doctor. What would you like to be when you grow up?"

"Well I'd really, really like to play football but I know that's not easy, so if I can't do that I think I'd like to be a policeman.

"That would be a very nice job, but it's dangerous and you could get hurt a lot." Ducky said

"Yeah but I'll have you and Jimmy to fix me."

"Well it seems you have it all worked out." Jenny laughed.

"Would you two like to go out and play or you could go up to Jimmy's room." Ducky suggested

"Can I show Tony my room." Jimmy asked excitedly and jumped up.

"Of course lad, have fun and behave."

Tony looked at Gibbs for permission and when he received the nod both he and Jimmy ran upstairs and started playing.

"I think those two will be good friends." Ducky said as they watched them leave.

"Yeah, Tony hasn't opened up to anyone the way he has to Jimmy, not even with Abby." Jenny added with a smile.

The three chatted for a few hours and didn't realise the time had passed so quickly. Jenny and Gibbs knew they had to get Tony home to bed as he had a big day the following day. The three made their way up the stairs and Ducky showed them to Jimmy's room. They opened the door and found both children fast asleep.

"I guess they were worn out." Gibbs said as he gently picked Tony up from the floor. "We should get him to bed."

"Thank you all for coming." Ducky said as he picked Jimmy up and put him in the bed. "I will talk to you both during the week."

"Bye Duck." they called as they left. The walk home didn't take too long and soon they had Tony tucked up in bed still fast asleep.

The following morning Tony was up bright and early eagerly awaiting the bus to bring him to camp. He gave Jenny and Gibbs a quick hug before jumping on board and taking his seat.

Jenny and Gibbs sighed in relief when he was gone; he had been so full of energy that morning that they were tired just looking at him.

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A/N: Thank you everyone for all of the amazing reviews and alerts. I am so sorry for how long it has taken me to get this chapter up. Life just gets busy sometimes. I haven't been on Fanfiction much. There are just so many TIVA stories and I really hate TIVA. I'm saving up all the non Tiva stories to read in a few weeks. I hate that the show is doing the whole Tive thing. Anyway today is my birthday so I'm heading out for the day but I wanted to get this up before i left. Hope you enjoy it


	8. Chapter 8

The next two weeks were going to be very busy for Jenny and Gibbs. They had numerous meetings with their lawyers to try and secure Tony's adoption. Tony's father lawyers were stalling looking for another family member to take the child in and to keep the company in the family. Jenny and Gibbs had assured them they didn't want the money for themselves and could be put into a trust fund for Tony, but the lawyers were playing hardball. Jenny and Gibbs knew that Tony was concerned as to why the adoption hadn't gone through yet so they wanted to get everything sorted. They were getting very frustrated with the lawyers but knew that it had to be done.

Over the two weeks they had gotten a few calls from Abby and Tim and they were both having a great time. The only calls that they received from Tony were through the camps nurse. She rang nearly every second day when Tony was brought to her with another injury. Tony assured Gibbs and Jenny that he was fine and that he was only getting injured because he was smaller than everyone else. By the time the two weeks of camp were up they were looking forward to having the kids back. Although they were frightened to see what injuries Tony had.

Abby and McGee arrived home on Saturday evening and neither of them shut up throughout dinner. They were both exhausted and went to bed early and slept until nearly lunch the following day. They were only up a few minutes when Tony's bus arrived home.

"Tony" Abby screamed as she ran at him and hugged him tightly.

"Oww." Tony groaned and Abby quickly let go looking wordily at her brother.

"What's wrong are you ok?" she asked as the others joined them.

"I'm ok just a bit bruised from football." Tony assured as he gave Jenny and Gibbs a hug.

"Let's get inside and you can tell us all about it." Jenny said and led them all into the house.

Tony dumped his bag in the hall and they went to living room.

"Um the nurse told me to give you this." Tony said and held out a few sheets of paper to Gibbs. "She said you might need them."

"What are they?" Abby asked curiously as they all moved to the living room.

"It's a list of all of the injuries Tony has gotten over the past two weeks." Gibbs explained as he glanced through the list. "Are you hurting anywhere at the moment?"

"My chest is a bit sore but it's just a bruise." Tony assured as he rubbed his chest."It's mostly just bruises and cuts. Most of them are nearly gone now."

"Did you have a good time?" Tim asked nervously.

"Yeah it was great, I got to play loads of sports, all different kinds and the coach said I was good." Tony said excitedly as he sat down on the couch. "I made loads of friends and I always got picked to be on a team and they didn't care that I was smaller than them."

"That's really great Tony." Abby said happily bouncing on her chair "I'm glad you had fun but I missed you."

"I missed you guys too," Tony replied "Did you guys have fun."

"Yeah it was really great, we got to do loads of cool experiments and they gave us ideas for science projects. We used computers to do stuff as well. Everything was just so cool. I made loads of friends but it was nice to have Timmy near me."

"Did you have a good time Tim?" Tony asked hesitantly.

"Yeah it was really fun; they showed us the inside of a computer and all about how computers work. They taught us loads of really cool things."

"I'm glad you all had fun." Jenny said when Tim had finished talking. "Now I think it' time for some lunch, I hope you are all hungry, I've made loads."

"I'm starving." Abby exclaimed as she jumped up

"Me too." Tim added as they all followed her out to the kitchen.

There were a lot of sandwiches, soup, chips and vegetables set on the table. They all sat down and dug in, eating their fill. After lunch the kids went outside to catch up and play in the back yard. After dinner Sarah came over for a visit with her new sisters. Jimmy also arrived for a quick visit to meet the other children. They were all delighted to meet Jimmy and they had a great time playing together.

The next few days were spent clearing out the attic to get it ready to convert into two new bedrooms and a bathroom. With the many new additions they had to the family, they needed the extra rooms for visitors. The family boxed up everything that was in the attic over the next two days, throwing away anything that was broken and donating anything they no longer needed. By the end of the two days the attic was cleared out and painted with a brand new double bed. Gibbs was going to put in the partitions and they would get someone in fit the bathroom while the kids were in Stillwater.

Tony's birthday was on Wednesday and a party was planned. Jack was coming to visit for a few days. Ducky and Jimmy were coming, as were all of the Andersons and a few of the other kids that Tony had become friendly with.

Tony woke early on Wednesday morning and walked down the stairs and into the kitchen where he heard talking.

"Tony, happy birthday." Jack called when they saw the birthday boy.

"Um thanks." Tony replied awkwardly as he walked towards the table. "What's going on?"

"It's your birthday and we are going to celebrate." Jenny explained excitedly. "I'm cooking a big birthday breakfast and later we'll have a party."

"Oh um ok." Tony replied hesitantly as he took his seat at the table not used to having a fuss for his birthday.

"You can open your presents after breakfast." Gibbs said to his son as they all started eating.

"I have presents?" Tony asked in shock dropping the pancake from his fork. "Presents for me?"

"Yes of course." Jenny assured with a smile. "And I'm sure you'll get more at your party."

"Wow." Tony grinned as he continued eating. "I never got birthday presents before."

"You will be getting presents for your Birthday every year and for Christmas from now on." Gibbs assured and gently squeezed Tony's shoulder. "Every kid should get presents."

"Cool." Tony grinned happily.

After breakfast Tony opened his presents. Gibbs and Jenny had gotten a bicycle for Tony and he was delighted. Jack had gotten Tony a new football, soccer ball, baseball bat and glove. Abby and Tim had gotten him some DVDs.

Tony was so happy with all of his presents but was very excited to try his bike. He had never had one before so was very excited to learn. Gibbs, Abby and Tim went outside with Tony to help him to learn. Tony spent the next hour learning before he was able to cycle on his own. By the time he came in it was time to get ready for the party. Tony changed his clothes and by the time he came back down people were arriving for the party.

Tony really enjoyed his party spending time with his friends. He was not used to being the centre of attention and although he found it very awkward at the start, he found that he quite enjoyed it. He loved the party and they had lots of food and played games and even watched a movie. By the time everyone left the Gibbs family were exhausted. Jethro, Jenny and Jackson took one child each and got them ready for bed. They were all exhausted and quickly fell asleep leaving the adults to clean up the mess.

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Again thank you so much for all of the awesome reviews and thanks for the favorites and follows. I really appreciate you taking the time, Its means a lot to know that people are enjoying the story.


	9. Chapter 9

The following Monday Jenny had to fly to Israel for work, so Gibbs was taking the week off to take care of the kids. After dropping Jenny at the airport, Gibbs and Jackson brought the kids to the park to play in the playground. When they were done they went out for some lunch before heading back to the airport for Jackson to catch his flight home. Jackson didn't want to go home but had to get back to his store and he knew he would be seeing the kids again soon. After dropping Jackson off, they returned home and ordered some pizza for dinner.

They had just finished breakfast the next morning when Gibbs got a call from work, they needed him to come in and sign some documents. Ducky was at work for the day and Jimmy was with him so he couldn't take care the kids and the Richardson's were away, so Gibbs had no choice but to bring the kids to the office with him. He quickly got them all ready and piled them into the car. During the car ride, Tony was talking constantly about a movie he had watched the previous evening, driving them all mad.

When they reached the Navy Yard, Gibbs led them to the bull pen and introduced them to Kate and Stan, his agents.

"Kate, Stan, these are my kids, Tony, Tim and Abby." Gibbs introduced them. "I need to go up to HR, keep an eye on them for a few minutes."

"On it boss." Stan replied and knelt down in front of the kids. "Do you want to sit at the desks and pretend to be Agents?"

"I want to see the lab." Abby said happily looking at Gibbs "Dad, can I, please."

"Stan, bring her down." Gibbs replied with a nod as he started walking away. "Kate, watch the other two."

"Ok Gibbs." Kate replied and blew her nose.

"Don't give your cold to Tony." Gibbs ordered her as he hurried up the stairs.

"I'm sitting at Dad's desk." Tim called as he quickly ran and jumped into the chair. "Oh look, he has loads of mail, can I open it?"

"I don't think that's a good idea." Kate said as she moved beside him.

"Stop." Tim called causing her to stumble. "You can't come near Tony in case he gets your cold. He's had loads of them and has been sick."

"I won't give him my cold." Kate sighed as she moved back to her own desk just as Gibbs was coming back down the stairs.

"Dad can I open your mail" Tim called as he waved the envelopes around.

"Just be careful not to tear anything." Gibbs replied with a smile.

"Here Tony, you can open this one." Tim said handing Tony a letter with a kiss on it.

Tony grinned as he took the letter and then quickly tore it open. Everyone gasped as a fine spray of power came out of the letter and went all over Tony. Tony dropped the letter on the ground and backed away.

"Crap." Gibbs yelled as he ran over to Tony. "Kate, tell everyone to get out now. Tony I'm just going to pour some water over your head ok."

Tony nodded, terrified but leaned his head over a trash can as Gibbs poured the water.

"Ok buddy, now all four of us are going to go take a shower." Gibbs said as he took Tony and Tim's hands.

He led them to the decontamination showers and showed them what to do before going into his own shower.

"Gibbs what was that powder." Tony asked as he washed himself. "And why is everyone scared."

"I don't know what it is Tony." Gibbs sighed "But sometimes people send nasty things in the post and they can make you sick, that's why we are worried. But the post office does something to get rid of the germs so hopefully it will be nothing."

"Oh ok." Tony replied and finished washing himself off.

When they were all dried off, they changed into some jump suits, which were much too large for Tony and Tim and went down to Autopsy where Ducky was waiting for them, dressed in a Hazmat suit.

"Oh Anthony." The ME sighed looking at the young boy, "I'm afraid you are going to have to go to the hospital to be checked out, but Kate here will have to go too so you won't be alone."

Tony's eyes were wide with fright as he looked at Gibbs backing away from everyone. "Please don't make me go. I'm sorry."

"There is nothing to be sorry for Tony." Gibbs assured as he reached out pulled the child into a hug "You are not being punished, but you have to go to make sure you don't get sick. I can't go with you until I find out who has done this. I will be with you as soon as I can."

Tony nodded as the men came into autopsy to take him and Kate to the hospital.

"See you later Tony." Tim called as his brother was led away. "Is he going to be alright?" He asked turning to Gibbs.

"I hope so." Gibbs replied as he gave Tim a quick hug. "We just have to wait. Ducky we need to find out what was in that envelope."

At the hospital Tony and Kate were subjected to an examination and to blood and urine tests. Tony was terrified through it all and was pale and shaking by the time they were shown to a room. The next few hours were very scary for Tony, so he rambled constantly about movies and TV programs, driving Kate insane. Unfortunately the tests came back showing that Tony had been infected by the Plague.

When the doctor came to insert the IV, Tony was shaking in fear.

"I know this is scary Tony but it won't hurt." Dr Pitt assured as he sat down on the edge of the boys bed. "I hear that you like movies. Do you know that my name is the same as a really famous actor?"

"Is your name Brad Pitt." Tony asked in surprise, forgetting about what was happening. "No way that's so cool. He's really famous. Are you related to him?"

"No I'm not." Brad replied with a grin as he taped the IV to Tony's arm. "Now we are all done. Now you just need to lie back and relax."

"What's wrong with me?" Tony asked worriedly. "Am I sick?"

"You have something called Y pestus, also known as the plague."

"I have the plague." Tony gasped in shock "That's a disease from like a million years ago. We learned about it in history class. Loads of people died from it."

"Yeah it is and yeah they did." Brad agreed as he stood up. "But they didn't have antibiotics back then like we do now."

"So I'm not going to die." Tony asked as he started coughing.

"You are going to be fine Tony." Brad assured patting the child's leg. "I'll be back in a little while."

Over the next few hours Tony condition deteriorated quickly and by the time Gibbs arrived, Tony was barely conscious.

"Tony." Gibbs whispered into the boy's ear. "Do you hear me Tony?"

"Yeah." Tony mumbled tiredly.

"You are not going to die. You are going to be just fine."

"I don't feel good." Tony mumbled and started coughing again.

Gibbs helped him to sit up and held him until the coughing fit ended. Tony was so exhausted that he collapsed against Gibbs.

"Agent Gibbs." Brad said as he came into the room. "You said that the Plague has been dead for a few hours now. I need to do another x-ray on Tony to see what damage has been done."

"Alright." Gibbs replied and gently laid Tony back down on the bed.

Brad and the nurses quickly took the required x-rays and let Gibbs back beside the child.

Brad returned a few minutes later with the x rays to show Gibbs.

"While the Plague virus is dead, it has already done a lot of damage." Brad explained pointing at the x-rays. "At the moment Tony has a severe case of double pneumonia which we are treating and he should recover from. He will however be left with scaring on his lungs."

"What'll this mean for Tony?"

"It means that he will have to be more careful of his health. Any cough or cold he gets could cause problems." Brad replied with a sigh "I've noticed he doesn't like hospital s, but he will need constant checkups and he will have to go to the doctor for every cold."

"He's going to love that." Gibbs sighed looking down at the sleeping child. "What can I do for him now?"

"Just be with him. He is exhausted and needs all the support he can get. It's possible we will need to put him on a ventilator, but I would prefer not to do that if we can avoid it."

"Ok." Gibbs replied as he a pulled a chair beside Tonys bed and made himself comfortable.

When Tony was finally resting peacefully, Gibbs made some phone calls. One to Jenny to tell her what was happening and the other to Ducky to update him and see if he could take care of the other kids.

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A/N: Thank you again for all of the reviews and favorites and follows, Hope you liked the chapter.


	10. Chapter 10

The next week passed in a blur for Gibbs. Jenny was unable to leave for the first few days but would be back as soon as possible. Gibbs knew what she was doing was very important and he told her that there was no need to rush back. Ducky had volunteered to take the other kids for the rest of the week.

Gibbs spent the week at Tony's bedside while Tony remained unconscious most of the time, due to the pain killers, steroids and antibiotics. Towards the end of the week Tony was awake more often and kept asking to go home even though he was still very tired and sick.

Jenny had arrived home near the end of the week bringing a young girl with her. Jenny stayed home with the other kids, with occasional visits to Tony. The other kids were not allowed into visit Tony and they were very anxious to see him.

Tony was finally released a week and a day after he had been admitted. He was sent home with an inhaler, as well as a nebulizer and an oxygen tank and mask to be used at night or in case of an emergency.

When Gibbs arrived home with Tony, the others were all waiting in front of the house for them. Gibbs got out of the car and moved to the back where he picked Tony up and carried him to the house. Tony's eyes opened as he heard everyone and he looked at his family with a smile.

"Tony." Abby squealed as she ran forward. "I'm so glad you're home. We were so worried about you."  
"I'm ok Abbs." Tony assured as Gibbs put him down and steadied him.

"Still, I was so scared. You're not allowed to get sick again." Abby said as she gave him a gentle hug

"I'll try Abbs." Tony replied with another small smile.

"Come on Tony, it's time to go inside and rest." Jenny said as she gently led Tony through the door. "You are still not better and need to take it easy."

"I know." Tony sighed and coughed a little.

Jenny gently led him to the couch while Gibbs brought in all of the medicines and Tony's bag. Gibbs brought all of the things up to Tony's room and set them up to be used later.

"Tony this is Ziva." Jenny said introducing him to the girl she had brought home. "Ziva is going to be living with us."

"Um, hi." Tony greeted nervously with a small smile.

When Gibbs returned down stairs Tony was sitting in between Abby and Tim and Jenny was in the kitchen with Ziva getting dinner ready. Ducky was bringing Jimmy over later for dinner. He and Tony were getting on very well and the young boy was very worried about his friend.

"How's he doing?" Jethro asked as he joined Jenny in the kitchen.

"He's tired." Jenny replied "But he seems very happy to be home. He's watching some TV with Abby and Tim, but I don't think he'll last long."

"I'm glad he's home." Gibbs added thinking back over the past week. It had been difficult. "He really hates hospitals and it hasn't been easy keeping him there in the last few days."

"I'm sure it wasn't and I'm sorry I wasn't there more, but Tony seems more comfortable with you around."

"Yeah I've noticed that." Gibbs replied with a soft smile. "And I don't mind, I feel closer to him and he seems to be talking a bit more."

"That's good to hear." Jenny smiled happily as she continued with the dinner. While she was a little jealous that Tony seemed to like Jethro more, she was glad that he was becoming more comfortable with them. She knew that Tim was more comfortable with her and Abby seemed to be comfortable with both of them. "Go relax for a while. The dinner will be ready soon."

"Thanks." Gibbs replied and gave Jenny a light kiss. "I love you."

"I love you too."

Tony had fallen asleep on the couch between his siblings, but woke when Jimmy arrived with Ducky following behind.

"Tony." Jimmy said quietly as he saw his friend looking very pale and very small on the couch. "Oh, is he ok."

"Hey Jimmy." Tony replied as he rubbed his eyes, waking him up some more. "I'm ok, really."

"You're just so pale." Jimmy sat as he sat beside Tony worried about his friend. "I'm glad you're out of hospital."

"Me too." Tony replied "I really hate hospitals."

"Dinner's ready." Jenny called from the kitchen and Tim and Abby quickly jumped up and ran to the kitchen. Tony slowly got up and Jimmy stood protectively beside him as they walked slowly to the table. When everyone was seated, Jenny served up the food. Everyone quickly started eating the lovely food. Jenny was watching Tony throughout the dinner worried that he wouldn't eat, but for a change he ate hungrily and cleared his plate , and even had desert.

When dinner was finished Jenny could see that Tony was tired but trying not to show it. She knew he wouldn't go to bed but he needed to take his nebulizer.

"Tony, do you want to take your nebulizer down here or do you want to go up to bed." Jenny asked as she and Jethro tidied up.

"Can I take it down here?" Tony asked with a slight wheeze "I don't want to go to bed yet."

"Alright." Jenny agreed with a smile as Jethro left to get the nebulizer.

Tony walked slowly back to the living room, with Jimmy and Tim at either side and Abby behind him. He took his seat just as Gibbs returned with the nebulizer. Once it was set up Gibbs placed the mask over Tony's face and started the treatment. Tony sat quietly while the treatment ran its course as everyone watched a film. Tony fell asleep shortly after he took the nebulizer off and Gibbs carried him up to bed and got him changed and tucked in. Tony had to sleep slightly raised up so he was lying against a pile of pillows. Gibbs fitted the nasal cannula under Tony's nose as Jenny came in and gave the boy a kiss on the head. They both watched him sleep for a few minutes before going back down stairs.

Tony woke late the next morning and carefully got out of bed. He took off the oxygen and went to the bathroom. He slowly made his way downstairs and into the living room where he found Gibbs reading a news paper.

"Morning." Tony mumbled as he sat down beside Gibbs

"Good morning Tony." Gibbs greeted as he put down his newspaper. "How are you feeling?"

"Fine." Tony replied hesitantly. "I'm still tired."

"You are going to be tired for a while yet." Gibbs said as he pulled Tony into his arms. "You just need to take it easy and you'll get better."

"I know." Tony sighed as he snuggled into Gibbs' arms.

"Do you want something to eat?" Gibbs asked after a few minutes.

"I'm not really hungry." Tony replied and started coughing.

"You need to try to eat something kiddo." Gibbs said softly. "You won't get better if you don't eat. How about you try some oatmeal? Just a few spoonfuls."

"Ok." Tony reluctantly agreed as Gibbs stood up with Tony still in his arms and made his way to the kitchen.

"Good morning Tony." Jenny greeted when she saw him. "Do you want some breakfast? I was just going to make some oatmeal."

"Maybe a little bit." Tony replied as Gibbs sat him down on a chair. "I'm not really that hungry. Where is everyone?"

"They are out in the garden playing." Jenny replied as she fixed the breakfast. "I can call them in to play inside for a little while."

"no that's ok." Tony assured as he drank some water. "They'll get bored cos I'll probably just sleep again."

"Well we can see if they want to keep you company." Jenny smiled as she placed a small bowl of oatmeal in front of him. "Eat what you can and then you can take your medicine and nebulizer."

"We can watch a movie." Gibbs suggested as Tony slowly started eating his breakfast. "You can pick out anything you want."

"Ok." Tony replied with a smile as he finished ate a few spoonfuls of the oatmeal. "I can't eat anymore."

"That's ok buddy." Gibbs assured as he took the bowl away and then help Tony into the living room. "Why don't you pick what you want to watch." Gibbs suggested as he sat Tony down on the couch. "I'm just going to get your medicine ready and then I'll sit down with you."

"K." Tony nodded and started looking through the DVD's

Gibbs returned with Tony's antibiotics, painkillers and his nebulizer. He gave his son the medicine and then put the mask over his face. Gibbs sat down beside him and Tony snuggled against his side as the movie started. Jenny sat down beside them and wrapped a blanket around Tony. Soon the rest of the kids joined them to watch the film. Abby was having a hard time adjusting to having Ziva with them. Tim was trying hard to be nice to Ziva, but he didn't want Abby to be angry with him. Ziva was very different from the other kids. While she was the same age, she acted much older and was having a hard time adjusting to the changes in her life.

Over the next few days the family spent time together just relaxing at home and getting to know Ziva. Tony spent his days on the couch or in bed. He was still exhausted and didn't have much energy. He did take the time to get to know Ziva and the pair seemed to get on well, much to Abby's disappointment. The following week Gibbs and Jenny both needed to go back to work. Ducky was going to stay with the children for two days and the Jenny and Gibbs were taking off 1 day each. After that they would be heading to Stillwater. Over the week, Tony slowly started improving and was coughing less. The more he improved, the more they were all looking forward to their trip.

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A/N: Thank you for all of the amazing reviews. I'm glad you are enjoying the story.


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